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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 · field · row · pass · cold · rule · club · lean

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. rule — government
  4. row — a line
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pass — a permit
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. club — for golf
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. row — to paddle
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. club — for dancing
  20. rule — a law
  21. lean — thin
  22. field — for sport
  23. lean — to bend
  24. cold — an illness

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