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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. spring — a coil
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. shower — rain
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. spring — of water
  8. foot — a measure
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. shower — to wash
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. field — a subject
  17. kick — in football
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stand — to bear
  21. field — farmland
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. spring — the season

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