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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. field — farmland
  4. march — music
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. capital — a city
  8. deal — to handle
  9. march — the month
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. capital — money
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. net — after costs
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. net — in sport
  16. field — for sport
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. march — the month
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. net — for catching
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. field — a subject

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