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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. squash — to crush
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cold — not warm
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. squash — the sport
  15. drill — a practice
  16. field — farmland
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. drill — the tool
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. drill — army training
  22. cold — an illness
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. branch — a division

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