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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 · file · patient · hand · field · toast · branch · land

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. field — for sport
  4. toast — bread
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. pitch — completely
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. field — a subject
  11. land — ground
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. hand — in cards
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. field — farmland
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. file — a document
  18. hand — help
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. branch — a division
  21. file — a tool
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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