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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: snap · field · craft · pitch · perch · prune · band · can

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. craft — a skill
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. can — to be able to
  12. pitch — completely
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. craft — boats
  19. can — a tin
  20. band — a music group
  21. snap — to click
  22. band — a ring
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. can — a tin

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