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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. file — a document
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — a grade
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. file — a tool
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. snap — to click
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. field — for sport
  23. squash — the sport
  24. file — a line of people

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