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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — the fish
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. tube — the underground
  5. fork — in a road
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mark — a grade
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bass — low music
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. charge — in control
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bat — the animal
  17. tube — a container
  18. charge — a price
  19. charge — electricity
  20. fall — the season
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. fall — to drop

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