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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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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: ball · row · club · ground · cold · pitch · stand · perch

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. row — to paddle
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. club — for golf
  8. cold — an illness
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ball — a great time
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pitch — completely
  15. club — a group
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. club — for dancing
  19. stand — to bear
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. row — a line
  23. ground — crushed
  24. cold — not warm

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