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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 124 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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mate — to breed
  3. kick — in football
  4. roll — a cake
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. mate — a friend
  9. pound — a weight
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mate — a partner
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. squash — to crush
  18. field — farmland
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. roll — a list
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. field — a subject
  24. bark — to shout

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