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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. field — for sport
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. kid — child
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. field — farmland
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. bound — tied together
  18. lie — to recline
  19. bound — obliged
  20. pass — a permit
  21. bound — certain
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. field — a subject

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