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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. season — in sport
  3. bound — certain
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. field — for sport
  9. kid — to tease
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. bound — obliged
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. bound — tied together
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. kid — child
  18. game — wild animals
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. game — a match
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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