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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 120 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: staff · stick · rule · field · pitcher · craft · kid · hide

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rule — a law
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. staff — employees
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. rule — government
  11. staff — employees
  12. craft — a skill
  13. kid — to tease
  14. craft — boats
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. kid — child
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. staff — a stick
  20. field — farmland
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. field — for sport
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. hide — animal skin

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