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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. field — farmland
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. game — wild animals
  5. field — a subject
  6. season — of the year
  7. field — for sport
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pit — in a race
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. game — a match
  18. deal — to handle
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. season — in sport
  23. pit — a hole
  24. wake — a trail

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