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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. march — the month
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. fall — to drop
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. game — a match
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — completely
  12. game — wild animals
  13. field — a subject
  14. rush — hurry
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. fall — to drop
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. pass — a permit
  24. fall — the season

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