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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bound — obliged
  4. pitch — completely
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. last — to go on
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bound — tied together
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. field — for sport
  14. last — final
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. field — a subject
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. season — in sport
  20. last — finally
  21. bound — certain
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. season — of the year
  24. pitch — a sports field

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