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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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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 · fall · field · row · stick · key · bank · squash

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fall — to drop
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. bank — for money
  6. key — the most important part
  7. squash — the sport
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. key — for a lock
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. fall — the season
  14. field — a subject
  15. pitch — completely
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a line
  20. bank — for money
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bank — of a river
  23. key — in music
  24. squash — to crush

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