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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · ground · bear · hide · field · wake · prune · fork

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. field — farmland
  6. ground — the earth
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. ground — a position
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. ground — crushed
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. field — for sport
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. field — a subject
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. fork — in a road
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. wake — a trail
  24. prune — to trim

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