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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: pitcher · sharp · field · fan · patient · pitch · chest · bank

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. field — farmland
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. field — for sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bank — for money
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. field — a subject
  17. chest — a box
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. chest — of your body
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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