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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  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. bear — the animal
  2. race — a contest
  3. bound — tied together
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. bulb — for light
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bulb — for light
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. swing — music
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. bound — certain
  16. capital — money
  17. race — the arms race
  18. snap — to click
  19. race — humankind
  20. swing — in golf
  21. capital — a city
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bear — the animal
  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