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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. field — farmland
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. squash — to crush
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bat — the animal
  11. game — wild animals
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. field — for sport
  14. kick — in football
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. field — a subject
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. season — of the year
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. game — a match
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. squash — the sport
  24. season — in sport

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