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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. mug — a face
  3. hand — help
  4. field — farmland
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. rule — a law
  8. field — for sport
  9. suit — clothes
  10. hand — in cards
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. rule — government
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mug — a cup
  15. plane — a tool
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. foot — a measure
  18. kid — child
  19. field — a subject
  20. suit — to fit
  21. suit — in cards
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. mug — to rob
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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