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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. field — a subject
  3. ground — a position
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. ground — the earth
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. ground — crushed
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. cue — for pool
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. plane — a tool
  18. wake — a trail
  19. cue — a signal
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. kid — to tease

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