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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: band · firm · court · rest · field · hide · pitcher · kick

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. rest — what's left
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. field — farmland
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. firm — decided
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. field — for sport
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. kick — in football
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. firm — steady
  15. field — a subject
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. firm — a company
  24. hide — animal skin

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