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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: kick · capital · bat · leaves · field · ground · racket · toast

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ground — the earth
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. field — a subject
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. field — for sport
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. ground — a position
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — bread
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. ground — crushed
  19. capital — money
  20. kick — in football
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. bat — the animal
  23. capital — a city
  24. kick — with a leg

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