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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. field — a subject
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. season — of the year
  6. field — farmland
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. drill — a practice
  9. band — a music group
  10. field — for sport
  11. drill — army training
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. drill — the tool
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. fork — in a road
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. deal — to handle
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. band — a ring
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. season — in sport

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