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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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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — farmland
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. stand — to bear
  5. file — a document
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. spring — of water
  10. field — for sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. field — a subject
  13. bear — the animal
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. spring — a coil
  16. file — a tool
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. file — a line of people

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