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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. fork — in a road
  3. field — farmland
  4. hand — help
  5. season — in sport
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. game — a match
  8. season — of the year
  9. deal — to handle
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. field — for sport
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. game — wild animals
  23. field — a subject
  24. season — to add flavour

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