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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. rush — hurry
  3. root — the cause
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. fine — all right
  7. root — of a plant
  8. tube — the underground
  9. ground — a position
  10. tube — a container
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. field — a subject
  13. march — the month
  14. root — of a word
  15. ground — the earth
  16. field — farmland
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. season — of the year
  19. field — for sport
  20. ground — crushed
  21. march — music
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. march — the month

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