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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: pitch · tear · squash · chip · club · field

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. field — for sport
  4. chip — for betting
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chip — to eat
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. tear — to rip
  12. squash — the sport
  13. field — farmland
  14. squash — to crush
  15. field — a subject
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pitch — completely
  18. club — for dancing

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