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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. scale — in music
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. field — for sport
  6. season — in sport
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. scale — size or range
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. land — a country
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — a position
  13. ground — crushed
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. land — to come down
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. field — a subject
  19. land — ground
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. date — the fruit

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