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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. field — farmland
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. bark — to shout
  6. field — for sport
  7. bank — for money
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. game — a match
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stem — to come from
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bank — of a river
  19. perch — the fish
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bank — for money
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. craft — a handicraft

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