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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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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: cell · date · pitcher · toast · bark · drill · field · fall

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. field — farmland
  4. fall — the season
  5. drill — the tool
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fall — to drop
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. drill — army training
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. field — a subject
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. toast — bread
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bark — to shout
  24. drill — a practice

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