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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: squash · straw · rule · capital · dip · wake · field · spell

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. dip — to sink
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. spell — magic
  7. squash — the sport
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. rule — government
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. capital — a city
  13. wake — a trail
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. spell — a short time
  16. rule — a law
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. capital — money
  20. spell — letters
  21. squash — to crush
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. capital — a big letter

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