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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 120 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: pitcher · dip · leaves · land · mark · rush · mug · field

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. mug — a cup
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. mark — a grade
  5. rush — hurry
  6. field — farmland
  7. land — ground
  8. dip — to sink
  9. field — for sport
  10. mug — a face
  11. land — to come down
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mug — to rob
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. land — a country
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. field — a subject
  23. mark — a trace
  24. dip — a sauce

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