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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 116 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: cap · patient · spring · pitch · leaves · dip · field · court

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cap — a hat
  4. spring — of water
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cap — of ice
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. spring — the season
  9. pitch — completely
  10. field — a subject
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. cap — a lid
  13. dip — to sink
  14. court — of law
  15. field — farmland
  16. court — of a king
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. court — for sport
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. spring — a coil
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. field — for sport
  24. patient — a sick person

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