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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: scale · field · bat · bowl · hide · rest · net · toast

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. toast — bread
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. rest — a break
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. scale — in music
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. rest — what's left
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. rest — what's left
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. net — for catching
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bowl — a football final

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