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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 124 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 · bowl · kick · date · field · rest

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. 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. bowl — a dish
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. field — farmland
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — a break
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. rest — what's left
  9. field — for sport
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. kick — in football
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. field — a subject
  18. 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