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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. field — farmland
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — in sport
  5. fall — to drop
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. mark — a grade
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. bore — to tire
  11. field — for sport
  12. bat — the animal
  13. cap — a lid
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. fall — the season
  16. bore — to drill
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. cap — a hat
  20. field — a subject
  21. cap — of ice
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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