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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. spell — a short time
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — farmland
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. craft — boats
  9. mug — a face
  10. bass — low music
  11. mug — to rob
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. mug — a cup
  14. craft — a skill
  15. spell — magic
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. tube — the underground
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. field — for sport
  21. wake — a trail
  22. bass — the fish
  23. patient — a sick person
  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