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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. field — for sport
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. spring — the season
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. field — a subject
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lean — to bend
  12. field — farmland
  13. rest — what's left
  14. squash — to crush
  15. spring — a coil
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. rest — a break
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. fork — in a road
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — the sport
  22. rest — what's left
  23. lean — thin
  24. spring — of water

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