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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: field · mug · sharp · leaves · stand · pitcher · clip · perch

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. perch — the fish
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. sharp — clever
  5. field — farmland
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stand — to bear
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. mug — a cup
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. field — a subject
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. mug — to rob
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. mug — a face
  21. field — for sport
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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