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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. land — a country
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. stand — to bear
  5. squash — the sport
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. field — farmland
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. land — ground
  20. field — for sport
  21. land — to come down
  22. pitch — completely
  23. squash — to crush
  24. field — a subject

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