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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. pit — a hole
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pit — in a race
  5. firm — decided
  6. field — for sport
  7. firm — a company
  8. mate — a partner
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. field — a subject
  11. hand — in cards
  12. firm — steady
  13. mate — to breed
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. band — a ring
  17. mate — a friend
  18. squash — to crush
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. squash — the sport
  22. hand — help
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music group

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