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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. row — a line
  4. row — to paddle
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. bass — the fish
  10. field — a subject
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bass — low music
  17. hand — help
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. root — the cause
  20. field — farmland
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. wake — a trail
  23. hand — in cards
  24. calf — a young animal

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