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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: pitch · field · stand · game · cap · spring · kick · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. kick — in football
  3. wake — a trail
  4. stand — to bear
  5. cap — a hat
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. field — for sport
  9. cap — a lid
  10. spring — of water
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. field — farmland
  17. game — a match
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. field — a subject
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. spring — the season
  23. cap — of ice
  24. game — wild animals

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