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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bore — to tire
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. deal — to handle
  6. fine — high quality
  7. row — a line
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. pit — a hole
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. pit — in a race
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. bore — to drill
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — farmland
  18. row — to paddle

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