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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. scale — in music
  3. field — a subject
  4. hand — in cards
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. fine — all right
  8. field — for sport
  9. hand — help
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. row — to paddle
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. season — of the year
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bear — the animal
  17. season — in sport
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — a trail
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. row — a line
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. field — farmland
  24. scale — size or range

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