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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. field — for sport
  6. mine — for digging
  7. dip — to sink
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. field — a subject
  10. court — for sport
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. court — of law
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. bat — the animal
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. court — of a king
  24. field — farmland

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