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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 116 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 have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. content — happy
  4. face — to confront
  5. swing — to play on
  6. face — part of the head
  7. field — farmland
  8. swing — in golf
  9. content — the amount
  10. swing — music
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. field — for sport
  13. season — in sport
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. field — a subject
  16. branch — a division
  17. season — of the year
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. face — to point toward
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. branch — of a bank
  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