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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — farmland
  4. last — to go on
  5. spring — the season
  6. craft — boats
  7. spring — of water
  8. craft — a skill
  9. suit — to fit
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — a position
  13. field — a subject
  14. ground — crushed
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. suit — clothes
  17. last — final
  18. tube — a container
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. bat — the animal
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. last — finally
  24. spring — a coil

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