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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 120 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: field · file · rule · game · chest · pitch · leaves · bank

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bank — for money
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a document
  8. rule — a law
  9. pitch — completely
  10. field — for sport
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. field — a subject
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. field — farmland
  18. file — a tool
  19. rule — government
  20. file — a line of people
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. chest — a box
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. game — a match

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