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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — a subject
  4. rush — hurry
  5. season — of the year
  6. present — a gift
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. present — the time now
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. chest — a box
  11. field — for sport
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. present — there
  14. field — farmland
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. season — in sport
  23. content — happy
  24. content — the amount

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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