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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. land — to come down
  3. season — in sport
  4. stand — to bear
  5. field — farmland
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — government
  11. field — for sport
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. field — a subject
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. land — ground
  16. land — a country
  17. sharp — clever
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. season — of the year
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stand — for spectators

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