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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. band — a music group
  3. field — for sport
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. band — a ring
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. rest — a break
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. net — in sport
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. rule — government
  18. rest — what's left
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. net — for catching
  21. rule — a law
  22. net — after costs
  23. field — farmland
  24. bat — in an idiom

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