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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: saw · rule · squash · drill · field · chest · safe · ground

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. chest — a box
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — to crush
  5. rule — a law
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. ground — a position
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. field — farmland
  12. rule — government
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. chest — of your body
  15. ground — the earth
  16. drill — army training
  17. field — for sport
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. drill — a practice
  20. field — a subject
  21. drill — the tool
  22. ground — crushed
  23. saw — the tool
  24. chest — of your body

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