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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — low music
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bore — to tire
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. chest — a box
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. net — in sport
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bore — to drill
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. net — for catching
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. net — after costs
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. chest — of your body

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