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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. kick — in football
  4. lie — to recline
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pass — a permit
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. field — farmland
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — to tire
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. field — a subject
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. scale — in music
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pitch — completely
  21. scale — size or range
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. field — for sport

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