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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. pop — soda
  3. can — a tin
  4. pop — music
  5. can — to be able to
  6. squash — the sport
  7. field — for sport
  8. file — a tool
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. field — farmland
  11. land — a country
  12. pop — to visit
  13. squash — to crush
  14. field — a subject
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. can — a tin
  19. land — to come down
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. file — a line of people
  22. land — ground
  23. file — a document
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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