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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. foot — a measure
  4. season — in sport
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. season — of the year
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bound — certain
  13. stem — to come from
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pitch — completely
  16. bound — tied together
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. chest — a box
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bound — obliged

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