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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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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: press · pitch · cell · lash · bat · club · rock · field

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. rock — music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. field — for sport
  7. rock — a stone
  8. pitch — completely
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. press — a publisher
  11. cell — in biology
  12. field — a subject
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. club — a group
  15. press — newspapers
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. press — to push
  18. club — for dancing
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. bat — the animal
  21. club — for golf
  22. cell — a phone
  23. field — farmland
  24. pitch — a sports field

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