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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 124 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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Word bank
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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: bound · chip · mark · cold · pitch · ball · fork · bark

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. ball — a great time
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ball — a dance
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bound — tied together
  8. pitch — completely
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bound — certain
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. chip — to eat
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. mark — a grade
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. bark — to shout
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pitch — a sports field

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