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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. hand — in cards
  4. cue — for pool
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. can — a tin
  8. hand — help
  9. can — a tin
  10. cue — a signal
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. can — to be able to
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cue — a hint
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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