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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: fork · pass · spring · foot · bat · pitch · field · court

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. pass — a permit
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. field — farmland
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. spring — of water
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. court — for sport
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. spring — the season
  14. fork — in a road
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pitch — completely
  17. field — for sport
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. court — of law
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. field — a subject
  23. court — of a king
  24. fork — a garden tool

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