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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 120 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  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. present — there
  3. field — for sport
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. present — a gift
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. field — farmland
  14. deal — to handle
  15. present — the time now
  16. kid — child
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. wake — a trail
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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