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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cap — a hat
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. field — for sport
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cue — a hint
  11. game — wild animals
  12. band — a music group
  13. date — the fruit
  14. pit — in a race
  15. game — a match
  16. field — farmland
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. cue — a signal
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. plane — a tool
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. cap — of ice

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