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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  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. field — farmland
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. game — a match
  5. chip — for betting
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. mark — a trace
  9. track — to keep track
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chip — to eat
  12. swing — music
  13. track — a song
  14. field — for sport
  15. swing — in golf
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mark — a grade
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. dip — to sink
  21. track — a path
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. swing — to play on
  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