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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: pitcher · key · cold · pound · jam · mouse · field · bat

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. field — farmland
  6. key — in music
  7. field — for sport
  8. key — for a lock
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. cold — an illness
  13. pound — a weight
  14. field — a subject
  15. cold — not warm
  16. key — the most important part
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. mouse — the animal

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