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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. swing — to play on
  3. net — for catching
  4. wake — a trail
  5. field — a subject
  6. swing — music
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. bulb — for light
  9. field — farmland
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. net — in sport
  16. bore — to tire
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bulb — for light
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a line
  22. net — after costs
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wave — with your hand

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