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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 116 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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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: perch · season · pitch · board · pit · capital · mate · stand

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. season — of the year
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. capital — a city
  5. stand — to bear
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. board — a committee
  9. season — in sport
  10. pitch — completely
  11. board — to get on
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. mate — a partner
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. capital — money
  20. mate — a friend
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pit — a hole
  23. mate — to breed
  24. pit — in a race

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