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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: ball · squash · row · hand · safe · field · hide · calf

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. squash — to crush
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. ball — a great time
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. squash — the sport
  16. hand — help
  17. field — a subject
  18. row — a line
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. ball — a dance
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. hand — in cards
  23. row — to paddle
  24. ball — a round shape

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