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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. squash — the sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. staff — employees
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. spring — the season
  9. field — for sport
  10. fork — in a road
  11. firm — a company
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. squash — to crush
  14. spring — of water
  15. field — farmland
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. cold — not warm
  18. firm — steady
  19. cold — an illness
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. staff — employees
  22. spring — a coil
  23. staff — a stick
  24. firm — decided

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