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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. wake — a trail
  4. bass — low music
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bass — the fish
  7. field — for sport
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bore — to tire
  10. hand — help
  11. field — farmland
  12. sharp — clever
  13. squash — to crush
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bore — to drill
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. wake — before a funeral

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