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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: band · track · field · date · pitcher · land · scale · foot

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. field — farmland
  5. land — ground
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. track — to keep track
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — to come down
  11. foot — a measure
  12. date — the fruit
  13. track — a song
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. band — a music group
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. track — a path
  20. land — a country
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — for weighing

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