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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. lean — thin
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. field — for sport
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. track — a song
  12. object — an aim
  13. field — a subject
  14. object — to protest
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. lean — to bend
  17. object — a thing
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bass — low music
  20. track — a path
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bat — the animal
  24. field — farmland

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