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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. field — farmland
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. squash — the sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. plane — a tool
  11. wound — an injury
  12. field — for sport
  13. wound — an injury
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — in football
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. squash — to crush
  18. mouse — the animal

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