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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. mate — a friend
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. field — for sport
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. wake — a trail
  10. current — of water
  11. present — the time now
  12. fork — in a road
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. current — electric
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. mate — to breed
  20. present — a gift
  21. current — happening now
  22. mate — a partner
  23. present — there
  24. cold — not warm

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