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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. rule — a law
  5. shower — to wash
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. court — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. field — a subject
  12. court — of law
  13. root — of a word
  14. squash — to crush
  15. kick — in football
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. shower — rain
  19. root — of a plant
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. root — the cause
  23. rule — government
  24. court — of a king

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