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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. season — in sport
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. band — a ring
  6. game — a match
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. rest — what's left
  9. season — of the year
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. band — a music group
  13. rest — a break
  14. pound — a weight
  15. rest — what's left
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. ball — a dance
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. pound — for dogs
  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