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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. club — for dancing
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. charge — a price
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. file — a tool
  8. charge — electricity
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. field — a subject
  11. charge — in control
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. craft — a skill
  14. game — a match
  15. season — of the year
  16. file — a document
  17. game — wild animals
  18. field — farmland
  19. craft — boats
  20. club — for golf
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. season — in sport
  23. file — a line of people
  24. club — a group

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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