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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. field — for sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. capital — money
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — to crush
  10. saw — the tool
  11. capital — a city
  12. bore — to drill
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. snap — to click
  17. field — farmland
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. bore — to tire
  20. saw — the tool
  21. field — a subject
  22. lean — to bend
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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