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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. firm — decided
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. field — a subject
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. present — a gift
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. firm — steady
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. firm — a company
  15. field — for sport
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. mark — a grade
  20. present — the time now
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mine — for digging
  24. field — farmland

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