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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. field — a subject
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. field — farmland
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. fine — high quality
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. fine — all right
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. content — the amount
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mark — a trace
  24. field — for sport

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