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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. field — farmland
  3. ball — a great time
  4. present — the time now
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. degree — temperature
  8. mark — a trace
  9. pop — to visit
  10. mine — for digging
  11. pop — soda
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pop — music
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. field — for sport
  18. degree — an amount
  19. present — a gift
  20. mark — a grade
  21. ball — a dance
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. field — a subject

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