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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: bark · shower · pitch · foot · bat · pass · object · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. foot — a measure
  4. field — farmland
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. shower — to wash
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pitch — completely
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pass — a permit
  11. shower — rain
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. bark — to shout
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — to protest
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. object — a thing
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. field — a subject
  24. foot — part of the body

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