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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. land — ground
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. rest — a break
  5. current — of water
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. rest — what's left
  9. march — music
  10. current — happening now
  11. field — farmland
  12. wound — an injury
  13. field — a subject
  14. current — electric
  15. field — for sport
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. land — to come down
  18. march — the month
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. land — a country
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. march — the month

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