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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: bay · foot · sharp · ruler · squash · rest · field · mine

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. foot — a measure
  5. field — for sport
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. field — a subject
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — what's left
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. rest — a break
  14. field — farmland
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. squash — the sport
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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