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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. mate — to breed
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mate — a friend
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. bound — obliged
  9. current — electric
  10. mate — a partner
  11. field — a subject
  12. cold — an illness
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. bound — tied together
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. field — farmland
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. bound — certain
  21. current — of water
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. current — happening now
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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