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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 116 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. fine — all right
  6. field — farmland
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. squash — to crush
  10. net — for catching
  11. fine — high quality
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bear — the animal
  15. wax — to grow
  16. net — after costs
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. net — in sport
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. pitch — completely
  22. field — for sport
  23. bear — the animal
  24. field — a subject

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