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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 · rush · root · court · racket · net · hand · patient

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. pitch — completely
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rush — hurry
  8. net — in sport
  9. root — of a plant
  10. court — for sport
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. root — of a word
  13. net — for catching
  14. root — the cause
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. hand — in cards
  18. net — after costs
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. hand — help
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. court — of law
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. rush — a thrill

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