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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: roll · pitcher · bound · ground · field · lie · calf · fall

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a cake
  7. field — a subject
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. ground — a position
  11. bound — certain
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bound — obliged
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. roll — a list
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — the earth
  19. field — for sport
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bound — tied together
  23. fall — the season
  24. lie — to recline

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