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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. staff — employees
  3. squash — the sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cap — a hat
  8. squash — to crush
  9. game — a match
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. cap — of ice
  12. staff — a stick
  13. rock — music
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. cap — a lid
  17. field — for sport
  18. lie — to recline
  19. pop — music
  20. field — a subject
  21. pop — to visit
  22. staff — employees
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pop — soda

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