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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. field — farmland
  8. pitch — completely
  9. march — the month
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. land — a country
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. land — ground
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. stem — to come from
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. field — a subject
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. land — to come down
  24. date — the fruit

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