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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: wound · chip · field · temple · prune · hand · hide · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. field — a subject
  3. wound — an injury
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hand — in cards
  6. prune — to trim
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. chip — for betting
  10. field — farmland
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. wound — an injury
  15. field — for sport
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hand — help
  18. prune — to trim
  19. chip — to eat
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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