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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: field · foot · board · chest · bark · rush · pitch · fine

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. chest — a box
  3. fine — all right
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. foot — a measure
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. board — to get on
  8. field — a subject
  9. rush — hurry
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. fine — high quality
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. field — for sport
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. board — a committee
  20. pitch — completely
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. chest — of your 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