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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 116 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: ground · land · pitch · field · object · mine · press · ball

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. object — an aim
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pitch — completely
  6. field — for sport
  7. object — to protest
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. ground — a position
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. press — a publisher
  16. field — a subject
  17. object — a thing
  18. land — to come down
  19. press — to push
  20. press — newspapers
  21. mine — for digging
  22. field — farmland
  23. ground — crushed
  24. mine — belonging to me

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