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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. board — to get on
  3. field — farmland
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. net — for catching
  7. field — for sport
  8. mate — a partner
  9. deal — to handle
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. pop — music
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — in sport
  18. pop — soda
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. board — a committee
  24. pop — to visit

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