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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. pass — a permit
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. rash — hasty
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. season — of the year
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. field — a subject
  10. season — in sport
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. rash — a series
  13. last — final
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. last — to go on
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. field — farmland
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. field — for sport
  24. last — finally

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