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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. wound — an injury
  3. field — a subject
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. mark — a grade
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. mark — a trace
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — in sport
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bass — low music
  12. bass — the fish
  13. court — of law
  14. season — of the year
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. court — of a king
  17. squash — the sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. court — for sport
  20. branch — a division
  21. wound — an injury
  22. field — for sport
  23. squash — to crush
  24. mark — to pay attention

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