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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: pop · field · pitch · pound · chest · court · coach · fall

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — to drop
  4. court — for sport
  5. chest — of your body
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. pop — soda
  8. pop — music
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. chest — a box
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. court — of a king
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. court — of law
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pitch — completely
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. field — farmland

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