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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: cell · squash · mug · track · game · field · band · foot

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cell — a phone
  3. track — a path
  4. mug — to rob
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cell — in biology
  7. band — a music group
  8. field — a subject
  9. band — a ring
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — a measure
  12. track — a song
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. field — farmland
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. mug — a cup
  17. track — to keep track
  18. squash — the sport
  19. game — a match
  20. mug — a face
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. squash — to crush
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. field — for sport

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