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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 116 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. field — for sport
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. can — a tin
  5. row — a line
  6. charge — in control
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. charge — electricity
  9. field — a subject
  10. swing — music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. can — a tin
  13. cold — not warm
  14. charge — a price
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — there
  17. swing — to play on
  18. can — to be able to
  19. row — to paddle
  20. swing — in golf
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. field — farmland
  23. present — the time now
  24. cabinet — ministers

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