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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cue — a hint
  6. field — for sport
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cold — not warm
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. field — a subject
  14. season — in sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. cell — a phone
  17. season — of the year
  18. foot — the bottom

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