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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 120 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. deal — to handle
  7. field — a subject
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — shares
  10. field — for sport
  11. firm — steady
  12. stock — goods
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. capital — money
  15. firm — decided
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. season — of the year
  19. field — farmland
  20. capital — a city
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. firm — a company
  23. season — in sport
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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