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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wake — a trail
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. squash — to crush
  5. rule — government
  6. squash — the sport
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — a subject
  12. cell — a phone
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. bulb — for light
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rule — a law

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