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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. shower — rain
  3. squash — the sport
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. field — for sport
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — to wash
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bulb — for light
  11. squash — to crush
  12. field — farmland
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. lean — thin
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. field — a subject
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bulb — for light

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