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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: squash · pitcher · rule · field · pit · mark · sharp · straw

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. mark — a grade
  10. rule — a law
  11. squash — the sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. rule — government
  14. field — for sport
  15. pit — a hole
  16. sharp — clever
  17. squash — to crush
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. pit — in a race
  21. field — a subject
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mark — a trace

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