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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. field — for sport
  3. rest — what's left
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. kick — in football
  6. field — farmland
  7. can — to be able to
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. can — a tin
  10. fork — in a road
  11. field — a subject
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. rash — a series
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. rest — a break
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. rest — what's left
  20. lie — to recline
  21. can — a tin
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. kick — with a leg

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