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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.

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: jam · clip · wind · mine · bulb · coach · pitch · field

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bulb — for light
  3. field — farmland
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. bulb — for light
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mine — for digging
  12. clip — to cut
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. field — for sport
  18. clip — a video
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pitch — completely
  23. field — a subject
  24. mine — an explosive

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