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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: wound · tube · arm · pitch · toast · squash · field · track

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. track — a path
  3. field — for sport
  4. wound — an injury
  5. field — a subject
  6. tube — the underground
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. tube — a container
  9. pitch — completely
  10. toast — bread
  11. track — to keep track
  12. field — farmland
  13. track — a song
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. squash — the sport
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. squash — to crush
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. squash — the vegetable

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