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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 116 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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. spring — of water
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. spring — a coil
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. craft — boats
  12. field — a subject
  13. last — finally
  14. pound — a weight
  15. field — farmland
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. last — final
  18. spring — the season
  19. last — to go on
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. squash — the sport
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — a skill

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