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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · straw · field · plane · kick · sharp

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. plane — a tool
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. field — for sport

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