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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 cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. suit — clothes
  3. tear — to rip
  4. suit — in cards
  5. pitch — completely
  6. field — a subject
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. suit — to fit
  12. spell — a short time
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. spell — magic
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. spell — letters
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. field — farmland
  21. wake — a trail
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. leaves — lets stay

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