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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 · bound · field · bowl · suit · straw · hand · root

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. hand — help
  4. suit — in cards
  5. bound — obliged
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. field — farmland
  9. root — the cause
  10. field — for sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. root — of a word
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — tied together
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. suit — to fit
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. field — a subject

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