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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: spring · nail · pitch · field · present · perch · leaves · bass

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. field — farmland
  4. bass — the fish
  5. field — a subject
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. present — the time now
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. spring — the season
  15. present — a gift
  16. pitch — completely
  17. present — there
  18. bass — low music
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. spring — a coil
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. spring — of water
  23. perch — the fish
  24. field — for sport

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