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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. net — for catching
  5. march — the month
  6. stand — to bear
  7. field — farmland
  8. chest — of your body
  9. field — a subject
  10. chest — a box
  11. wake — a trail
  12. net — in sport
  13. march — music
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. field — for sport
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. net — after costs
  24. march — the month

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