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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 120 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 light ________________ burned out.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. ball — a great time
  3. field — a subject
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. field — farmland
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. march — the month
  8. content — happy
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. content — the amount
  12. deal — to handle
  13. ball — a dance
  14. march — music
  15. track — a path
  16. march — the month
  17. track — to keep track
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. bulb — for light
  21. field — for sport
  22. season — in sport
  23. track — a song
  24. season — of the year

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