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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: bore · toast · date · tube · ball · straw · squash · field

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. tube — a container
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bore — to drill
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. date — the fruit
  9. ball — a great time
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. field — for sport
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. toast — bread
  14. tube — the underground
  15. field — a subject
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bore — to tire
  21. squash — to crush
  22. ball — a dance
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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