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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.

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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: court · club · bass · ball · field · pitch · tear · kick

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ball — a dance
  3. club — a group
  4. field — a subject
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bass — the fish
  12. club — for dancing
  13. kick — in football
  14. pitch — completely
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. bass — low music
  17. ball — a great time
  18. field — for sport
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. club — for golf
  24. court — of law

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