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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  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. row — to paddle
  2. pit — a hole
  3. field — for sport
  4. rush — hurry
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. spring — a coil
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. fork — in a road
  10. field — a subject
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. season — of the year
  14. pit — in a race
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. snap — to click
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. row — a line
  19. spring — of water
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. field — farmland
  23. spring — the season
  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