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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 116 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. net — after costs
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. rash — a series
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. spring — of water
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. content — happy
  12. field — a subject
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. field — for sport
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. content — the amount
  17. spring — a coil
  18. net — for catching
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. net — in sport
  22. tube — a container
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. spring — 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