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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.

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: pitch · chair · club · craft · shower · land · foot · field

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. club — for dancing
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. shower — rain
  8. field — for sport
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. craft — a skill
  11. land — to come down
  12. pitch — completely
  13. club — a group
  14. field — a subject
  15. land — a country
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a leader
  18. shower — to wash
  19. craft — boats
  20. club — for golf
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. foot — a measure
  24. field — farmland

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