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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. game — a match
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. bulb — for light
  8. staff — a stick
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. field — for sport
  12. squash — the sport
  13. staff — employees
  14. bulb — for light
  15. field — a subject
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. staff — employees
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. field — farmland
  23. pitch — completely
  24. game — wild animals

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