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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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468
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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. fall — to drop
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. field — a subject
  5. fall — the season
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. field — farmland
  13. squash — the sport
  14. capital — a city
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. field — for sport
  17. cold — not warm
  18. kick — in football
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. squash — to crush
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. kick — a thrill

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