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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cue — for pool
  5. cue — a hint
  6. firm — decided
  7. field — a subject
  8. spring — the season
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. spring — of water
  11. field — for sport
  12. spring — a coil
  13. cell — a phone
  14. saw — the tool
  15. firm — steady
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. field — farmland
  20. pit — in a race
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cell — in biology
  24. squash — the 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