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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.

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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 · pop · bat · cabinet · board · capital · patient · court

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. court — of law
  4. pop — soda
  5. capital — money
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. court — of a king
  9. capital — a city
  10. board — a committee
  11. pop — music
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pitch — completely
  18. board — to get on
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. court — for sport
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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