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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. firm — steady
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. firm — decided
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pop — soda
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. firm — a company
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. wound — an injury
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. field — farmland
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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