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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: stand · lie · tear · mine · charge · field · pitch · date

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. charge — electricity
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. field — for sport
  9. charge — a price
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pitch — completely
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. lie — to recline
  15. field — farmland
  16. tear — to rip
  17. charge — in control
  18. date — the fruit
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. field — a subject
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. tear — from crying

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