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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. field — for sport
  3. season — in sport
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — in football
  6. face — to confront
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. can — to be able to
  10. field — a subject
  11. fall — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. can — a tin
  15. mine — for digging
  16. can — a tin
  17. season — of the year
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. face — part of the head
  20. field — farmland
  21. fall — to drop
  22. face — to point toward
  23. spring — a coil
  24. fall — to drop

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