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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. bass — low music
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rock — music
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. rash — a series
  8. court — of a king
  9. bass — the fish
  10. field — farmland
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. march — the month
  13. rock — a stone
  14. foot — a measure
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. court — of law
  18. march — the month
  19. court — for sport
  20. march — music
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. rash — hasty

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