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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. rush — hurry
  3. field — farmland
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. field — a subject
  7. present — the time now
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. present — there
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. craft — a skill
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. craft — boats
  15. stock — goods
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. field — for sport
  18. stock — shares
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. branch — a division
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — for betting
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. branch — of a tree

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