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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: stand · ground · coach · season · pitcher · saw · present · rash

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. rash — hasty
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — a position
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. ground — crushed
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. saw — the tool
  10. rash — a series
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. season — in sport
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. present — the time now
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. ground — the earth
  19. present — there
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. present — a gift
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. stand — to bear
  24. season — of the year

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