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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: club · pitch · kick · wave · spring · kid

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. club — a group
  3. spring — a coil
  4. club — for dancing
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. kid — to tease
  7. spring — of water
  8. kick — in football
  9. spring — the season
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. club — for golf
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. pitch — completely
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. kid — child
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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