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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 116 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: pitch · field · mate · rush · kick · spell · lean · hand

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  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. rush — hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. field — for sport
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. field — farmland
  8. lean — thin
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. mate — to breed
  12. field — a subject
  13. spell — letters
  14. mate — a friend
  15. spell — magic
  16. lean — to bend
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. mate — a partner
  19. spell — a short time
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — in football
  23. hand — help
  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