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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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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — for sport
  6. foot — a measure
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — to crush
  11. field — farmland
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. field — a subject

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