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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: pitch · toast · fork · last · field · present · lash · shower

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. last — final
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. shower — rain
  10. last — finally
  11. present — there
  12. toast — bread
  13. field — a subject
  14. fork — in a road
  15. pitch — completely
  16. shower — to wash
  17. present — a gift
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — for sport
  21. present — the time now
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. fork — to eat with

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