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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: rash · field · nail · pitch · face · kick · vault · ruler

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. kick — in football
  3. field — farmland
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. rash — hasty
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — to point toward
  9. field — for sport
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. pitch — completely
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. rash — a series
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — a safe
  23. field — a subject
  24. face — part of the head

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