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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: field · rock · fine · cue · straw · wax · bat · date

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. field — for sport
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. fine — all right
  6. field — a subject
  7. cue — for pool
  8. fine — high quality
  9. field — farmland
  10. rock — music
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. cue — a hint
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bat — the animal
  18. date — the fruit
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. cue — a signal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. rock — a stone

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