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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. mug — a face
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — for sport
  6. mug — to rob
  7. ground — the earth
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — employees
  13. ground — crushed
  14. mug — a cup
  15. field — farmland
  16. lie — to recline
  17. season — of the year
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. ground — a position
  23. staff — a stick
  24. field — a subject

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