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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 · press · chip · face · field · plane · ball · pit

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chip — to eat
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. field — for sport
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pit — a hole
  7. ball — a great time
  8. face — to confront
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — a subject
  11. pit — in a race
  12. ball — a dance
  13. face — to point toward
  14. plane — a tool
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. press — to push
  18. press — newspapers
  19. pitch — completely
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. chip — for betting
  24. plane — in geometry

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