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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: shower · pitcher · field · cell · craft · stick · foot · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. field — for sport
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. cell — a phone
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — in biology
  15. field — farmland
  16. craft — a skill
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. craft — boats
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. shower — rain
  23. field — a subject
  24. bat — 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