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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
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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 · pit · can · clip · pitcher · craft · file · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. can — a tin
  3. pit — in a race
  4. clip — a video
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. field — a subject
  10. craft — boats
  11. pit — a hole
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. craft — a skill
  16. can — to be able to
  17. field — farmland
  18. can — a tin
  19. clip — to cut
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. field — for sport
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. mine — for digging
  24. file — a document

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