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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. capital — money
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stand — to bear
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. squash — the sport
  16. field — for sport
  17. kick — in football
  18. wound — an injury
  19. squash — to crush
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. capital — a city
  23. field — a subject
  24. wound — an injury

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