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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: game · fine · ball · pop · pitch · club · mark · field

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. club — for dancing
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. fine — high quality
  7. mark — a trace
  8. game — a match
  9. field — for sport
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. pitch — completely
  12. field — farmland
  13. pop — to visit
  14. ball — a dance
  15. game — wild animals
  16. club — a group
  17. club — for golf
  18. pop — music
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. ball — a great time
  22. pop — soda
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. field — a subject

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