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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. land — to come down
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. present — there
  5. ground — the earth
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — for betting
  8. land — a country
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — for sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — crushed
  15. present — the time now
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bore — to drill
  18. present — a gift
  19. land — ground
  20. bore — to tire
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — to cool the air

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