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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 120 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: perch · can · pop · chip · season · field · pitcher · snap

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. field — farmland
  4. chip — to eat
  5. can — to be able to
  6. snap — to click
  7. can — a tin
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pop — music
  11. season — of the year
  12. chip — for betting
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. field — a subject
  18. season — in sport
  19. perch — the fish
  20. field — for sport
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. pop — soda
  23. pop — to visit
  24. can — a tin

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