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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. degree — an amount
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. land — ground
  9. firm — decided
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. field — farmland
  12. season — of the year
  13. firm — steady
  14. land — to come down
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. wake — a trail
  17. field — a subject
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. firm — a company
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. land — a country
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. field — for sport

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