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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. chest — of your body
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. ball — a great time
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. saw — the tool
  9. field — a subject
  10. fork — in a road
  11. saw — the tool
  12. game — a match
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chest — a box
  15. field — farmland
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. stem — to come from
  20. game — wild animals
  21. chest — of your body
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. field — for sport

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