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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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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: fan · court · sharp · pit · key · field · pitch · present

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. present — there
  3. court — for sport
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. present — a gift
  9. court — of a king
  10. field — a subject
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. court — of law
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — in music
  16. field — farmland
  17. key — the most important part
  18. pit — in a race
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. sharp — clever
  21. field — for sport
  22. present — the time now
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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