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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. field — farmland
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. field — for sport
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. race — humankind
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. sharp — clever
  12. field — a subject
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. stand — to bear
  15. root — of a plant
  16. race — the arms race
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. race — a contest
  19. date — the fruit
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — the cause
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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