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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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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: fall · perch · cap · ground · field · shower

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. field — farmland
  3. shower — rain
  4. fall — the season
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — a hat
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fall — to drop
  9. ground — crushed
  10. shower — to wash
  11. fall — to drop
  12. field — for sport
  13. perch — the fish
  14. ground — the earth
  15. cap — of ice
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. field — a subject
  18. ground — a position

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