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

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  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. stand — for spectators
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. spring — a coil
  5. land — ground
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. scale — in music
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. scale — size or range
  11. last — finally
  12. stand — to bear
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. last — to go on
  15. spring — of water
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. land — to come down
  20. last — final
  21. land — a country
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. spring — the season
  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