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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: season · deal · band · present · wound · pitch · cabinet · field

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. deal — to handle
  3. field — for sport
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. band — a ring
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wound — an injury
  11. field — farmland
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. pitch — completely
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. field — a subject
  19. present — the time now
  20. season — in sport
  21. present — there
  22. season — of the year
  23. band — a music group
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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