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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bowl · club · capital · row · season · pitch · march · fan

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. march — the month
  5. capital — money
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. pitch — completely
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — a line
  13. club — for dancing
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. club — a group
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. march — music
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. capital — a city
  21. club — for golf
  22. season — of the year
  23. march — the month
  24. season — in sport

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