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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: mark · wound · wave · fan · season · field · pitch · scale

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. season — of the year
  3. wound — an injury
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. field — for sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. field — a subject
  8. wound — an injury
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. field — farmland
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. mark — a grade
  19. scale — size or range
  20. season — in sport
  21. scale — in music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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