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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. current — happening now
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. chest — a box
  5. cell — a phone
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. season — of the year
  10. field — for sport
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. current — of water
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cell — in biology
  16. court — of a king
  17. field — farmland
  18. current — electric
  19. court — of law
  20. court — for sport
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. pitcher — a jug

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