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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: lie · toast · fine · date · field · pitcher · racket · rash

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — all right
  11. field — farmland
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. rash — hasty
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. field — for sport
  16. toast — bread
  17. date — the fruit
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. field — a subject
  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