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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 120 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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. content — happy
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — for sport
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. hand — in cards
  12. kick — in football
  13. content — the amount
  14. scale — size or range
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. field — farmland
  20. season — of the year
  21. hand — help
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. season — in 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