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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 · face · last · patient · mouse · spring · stand · bat

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. stand — to bear
  3. face — part of the head
  4. spring — the season
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. bat — the animal
  7. last — final
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — to point toward
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. last — to go on
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pitch — completely
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spring — of water
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. last — finally
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. pitch — a sports field

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