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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  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. date — the fruit
  2. season — of the year
  3. firm — a company
  4. field — farmland
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. firm — decided
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. bulb — for light
  10. game — wild animals
  11. ball — a great time
  12. firm — steady
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. field — for sport
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. field — a subject
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. chair — a leader
  20. bulb — for light
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. ball — a dance
  23. game — a match
  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