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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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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. field — farmland
  3. bat — the animal
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rush — hurry
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. field — a subject
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — completely
  11. rest — what's left
  12. prune — to trim
  13. field — for sport
  14. prune — to trim
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rest — a break
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rush — to hurry

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