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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. present — the time now
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. field — a subject
  5. ground — crushed
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cue — a signal
  8. ground — the earth
  9. present — a gift
  10. spring — of water
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. ground — a position
  14. spring — the season
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cue — a hint
  17. plane — a tool
  18. spring — a coil
  19. date — the fruit
  20. rest — what's left
  21. field — for sport
  22. present — there
  23. rest — a break
  24. date — on the calendar

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