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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. pit — in a race
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. field — a subject
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. fall — to drop
  13. field — farmland
  14. date — the fruit
  15. pit — a hole
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — a short time
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bear — the animal
  24. spell — letters

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