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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · swing · row · pitch · date · wave · hand · staff

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. swing — in golf
  5. row — to paddle
  6. swing — to play on
  7. field — for sport
  8. hand — in cards
  9. staff — employees
  10. row — a line
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. swing — music
  14. hand — help
  15. field — farmland
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. pitch — completely
  19. staff — a stick
  20. field — a subject
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. staff — employees
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. date — the fruit

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