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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 116 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: fall · perch · cap · ground · field · shower · stand · pitcher

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. shower — to wash
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. field — farmland
  7. fall — the season
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. fall — to drop
  11. cap — a hat
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. cap — of ice
  14. fall — to drop
  15. shower — rain
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. perch — the fish
  18. ground — crushed
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. field — a subject
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cap — a lid
  23. stand — to bear
  24. field — for sport

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