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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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468
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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. content — happy
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. content — the amount
  6. charge — electricity
  7. degree — temperature
  8. field — for sport
  9. fork — in a road
  10. swing — to play on
  11. field — farmland
  12. charge — a price
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fine — all right
  15. degree — from a university
  16. swing — music
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. charge — in control
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. rash — a series
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. content — videos and posts

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