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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. field — farmland
  3. court — for sport
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — music
  6. field — for sport
  7. game — wild animals
  8. charge — in control
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — thin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. game — a match
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. field — a subject
  17. shower — to wash
  18. charge — electricity
  19. court — of law
  20. shower — rain
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. charge — a price
  23. swing — to play on
  24. court — of a king

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