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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: charge · pitch · game · face · track · mine · patient · arm

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. track — a path
  5. charge — a price
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mine — for digging
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. face — to point toward
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. game — wild animals
  18. pitch — completely
  19. game — a match
  20. charge — electricity
  21. charge — in control
  22. track — a song
  23. face — part of the head
  24. track — to keep track

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