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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. current — happening now
  3. key — in music
  4. spring — the season
  5. track — a path
  6. current — electric
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. march — music
  9. track — to keep track
  10. date — the fruit
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. track — a song
  14. current — of water
  15. key — the most important part
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. march — the month
  19. field — for sport
  20. key — for a lock
  21. spring — of water
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. march — the month

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