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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: staff · pitch · field · date · game · kick · chair · straw

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. staff — a stick
  3. kick — in football
  4. pitch — completely
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. field — a subject
  7. staff — employees
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. date — the fruit
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. field — for sport
  12. chair — a leader
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. game — a match
  21. field — farmland
  22. staff — employees
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. straw — dry grass

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