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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 116 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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. mate — a partner
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a friend
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. bulb — for light
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. kid — child
  14. staff — employees
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bulb — for light
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. staff — employees
  20. pitch — completely
  21. staff — a stick
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. ruler — for measuring

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