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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lean · field · track · cold · court · object · squash · pit

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. field — a subject
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. object — to protest
  7. field — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. pit — in a race
  10. lean — thin
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. lean — to bend
  13. squash — to crush
  14. track — to keep track
  15. field — farmland
  16. court — of a king
  17. cold — an illness
  18. track — a path
  19. object — a thing
  20. cold — not warm
  21. court — for sport
  22. track — a song
  23. squash — the sport
  24. pit — a hole

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