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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
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: foot · squash · field · cabinet · pit · present · bear · pop

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. present — a gift
  3. pop — soda
  4. field — for sport
  5. foot — a measure
  6. field — farmland
  7. squash — the sport
  8. pit — a hole
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pop — to visit
  11. present — there
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. pop — music
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. bear — the animal
  17. field — a subject
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. squash — to crush
  20. bear — the animal
  21. pit — in a race
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. present — the time now

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