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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pitch · hand · kid · pit · rule · spell · bank · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. pit — a hole
  4. spell — letters
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bank — of a river
  8. hand — help
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — for money
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. spell — magic
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. spell — a short time
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pitch — completely
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com