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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  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. row — a line
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. squash — the sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. game — a match
  11. row — to paddle
  12. field — for sport
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. game — wild animals
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. prune — to trim
  17. craft — boats
  18. field — a subject
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. prune — to trim
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — to crush
  23. hide — to keep secret
  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