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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: calf · game · net · march · pitch · pit · court · hand

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. court — for sport
  4. net — in sport
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. march — the month
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pit — a hole
  10. march — music
  11. court — of law
  12. game — wild animals
  13. net — after costs
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. hand — help
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. game — a match
  18. march — the month
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pitch — completely
  21. court — of a king
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. hand — in cards
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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