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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 120 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. field — farmland
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. craft — boats
  10. cell — a phone
  11. stock — shares
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. field — for sport
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cell — in biology
  19. season — of the year
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. stock — goods
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. season — in sport
  24. field — a subject

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