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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: fine · squash · pitcher · snap · bass · rest · field · content

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. rest — a break
  4. snap — to click
  5. squash — the sport
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. rest — what's left
  9. content — the amount
  10. field — for sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. bass — the fish
  13. squash — to crush
  14. rest — what's left
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. fine — all right
  17. content — happy
  18. field — farmland
  19. fine — high quality
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bass — low music
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. field — a subject

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