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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. degree — temperature
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — electricity
  12. bass — the fish
  13. lie — to recline
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. degree — an amount
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. bass — low music
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. degree — from a university
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. charge — in control

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