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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: hand · pitcher · cell · object · season · rush · stick · field

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. field — for sport
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. season — of the year
  11. field — farmland
  12. object — a thing
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. field — a subject
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. rush — hurry
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. hand — help
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. season — in sport
  23. object — to protest
  24. object — an aim

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