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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. field — for sport
  3. branch — a division
  4. land — a country
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. field — farmland
  10. land — ground
  11. deal — to handle
  12. field — a subject
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. band — a ring
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. band — a music group
  19. wake — a trail
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. land — to come down
  23. pit — in a race
  24. branch — of a bank

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