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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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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: net · fall · ball · pound · rule · cold · pitch · foot

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. fall — the season
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rule — a law
  9. foot — a measure
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. rule — government
  16. pound — a weight
  17. net — after costs
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pitch — completely

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