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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. spring — a coil
  3. season — in sport
  4. band — a music group
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. spring — of water
  7. season — of the year
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. spring — the season
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. band — a ring
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. toast — bread
  15. pitch — completely
  16. scale — size or range
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — in music
  20. board — a committee
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. board — to get on
  24. foot — a measure

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