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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: leaves · squash · straw · swing · calf · cap · bay · field

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. squash — the sport
  9. swing — to play on
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. field — farmland
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. swing — music
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. swing — in golf
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. cap — a hat
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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