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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.

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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: cue · game · can · lie · field · present · mug · wound

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. field — a subject
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cue — a hint
  6. mug — a cup
  7. can — to be able to
  8. field — farmland
  9. can — a tin
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cue — for pool
  12. mug — to rob
  13. game — wild animals
  14. present — a gift
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. lie — to recline
  17. mug — a face
  18. present — the time now
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. can — a tin
  21. wound — an injury
  22. game — a match
  23. field — for sport
  24. lie — an untruth

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