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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  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. field — farmland
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. bass — low music
  6. wound — an injury
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. game — a match
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. field — a subject
  18. wound — an injury
  19. foot — a measure
  20. bass — the fish
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. game — wild animals
  23. ruler — a monarch
  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