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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: pit · mine · stick · court · pitch · drill · staff · spell

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — employees
  5. drill — army training
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. court — of law
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. spell — magic
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. court — of a king
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. spell — a short time
  17. drill — the tool
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. court — for sport
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. pit — a hole
  22. drill — a practice
  23. spell — letters
  24. pitch — completely

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