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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. band — a ring
  5. season — in sport
  6. pit — in a race
  7. band — a music group
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. rock — music
  11. tube — the underground
  12. hand — help
  13. object — to protest
  14. field — farmland
  15. rock — a stone
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. field — a subject
  20. object — an aim
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. pit — a hole
  23. object — a thing
  24. hand — in cards

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