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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: rest · pitcher · field · branch · spell · wound · craft · bark

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rest — a break
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bark — to shout
  7. branch — a division
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. spell — magic
  11. rest — what's left
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. craft — boats
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. field — for sport
  17. craft — a skill
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wound — an injury
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. wound — an injury
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. spell — letters

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