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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ball — a great time
  3. field — a subject
  4. object — a thing
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. object — an aim
  8. object — to protest
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. roll — a cake
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. roll — a list
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. date — the fruit
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. field — for sport
  23. ball — a dance
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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