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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. pit — a hole
  4. field — for sport
  5. prune — to trim
  6. rock — music
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. rock — a stone
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — to drill
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. field — a subject
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — to trim
  21. scale — in music
  22. field — farmland
  23. fall — the season
  24. fall — to drop

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