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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: pitch · court · coach · sharp · fall · kid · mark · foot

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. mark — a trace
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. court — for sport
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. kid — to tease
  9. sharp — clever
  10. foot — a measure
  11. fall — to drop
  12. court — of law
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — child
  15. fall — to drop
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — completely
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. court — of a king
  23. mark — a grade
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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