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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. field — a subject
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. mate — a friend
  8. band — a ring
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bore — to tire
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. content — happy
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. content — the amount
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. band — a music group
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bore — to drill
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. mate — to breed
  24. band — a rubber band

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