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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. season — in sport
  7. present — a gift
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. face — part of the head
  11. face — to confront
  12. row — to paddle
  13. ball — a great time
  14. present — there
  15. spring — of water
  16. field — for sport
  17. row — a line
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. face — to point toward
  21. season — of the year
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — in a race
  24. ball — a dance

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