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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.

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: game · season · pitch · club · spring · face · mug · land

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. season — in sport
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. season — of the year
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. spring — of water
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. face — to point toward
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. face — part of the head
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. club — for dancing
  16. spring — the season
  17. mug — to rob
  18. face — to confront
  19. mug — a face
  20. club — for golf
  21. game — wild animals
  22. club — a group
  23. game — a match
  24. land — to come down

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