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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: field · pitch · ground · season · last · capital · lean · rash

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. field — a subject
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. lean — to bend
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. capital — a city
  9. lean — thin
  10. field — for sport
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. rash — a series
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. field — farmland
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. capital — money
  23. last — final
  24. capital — a big letter

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