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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · bound · game · pitch · field · net · bear · stick

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. field — a subject
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitch — completely
  8. field — for sport
  9. bound — certain
  10. field — farmland
  11. net — in sport
  12. game — a match
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bound — obliged
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bound — tied together
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. net — for catching
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. net — after costs

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