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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: tube · safe · mine · spring · arm · straw · pit · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mine — for digging
  3. tube — the underground
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. pit — a hole
  6. field — farmland
  7. tube — a container
  8. field — a subject
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. spring — a coil
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pit — in a race

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