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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. rest — a break
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — a trail
  8. field — for sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. tube — a container
  13. charge — in control
  14. rest — what's left
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. game — a match
  18. charge — a price
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. charge — electricity
  21. wind — moving air
  22. field — a subject
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wind — moving 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