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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. game — wild animals
  3. rash — a series
  4. game — a match
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. shower — rain
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. season — in sport
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. field — for sport
  15. content — happy
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. content — the amount
  18. field — farmland
  19. rash — hasty
  20. shower — to wash
  21. mate — to breed
  22. season — of the year
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mate — a partner

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