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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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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: spring · band · pitch · kick · club · squash · present · field

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. squash — to crush
  3. present — a gift
  4. field — for sport
  5. pitch — completely
  6. spring — of water
  7. field — farmland
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. spring — the season
  13. club — a group
  14. club — for dancing
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. present — the time now
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. field — a subject
  20. present — there
  21. club — for golf
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. squash — the sport
  24. band — a music group

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