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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. field — for sport
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. court — of law
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. dip — to sink
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. mug — to rob
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. cold — an illness
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. rule — government
  16. foot — a measure
  17. mug — a face
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. rule — a law

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