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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  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. court — for sport
  2. field — for sport
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. fine — high quality
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — all right
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. dip — to sink
  16. kick — in football
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. court — of a king
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. court — of law
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. hide — to keep secret
  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