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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 120 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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. foot — a measure
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. field — farmland
  5. craft — boats
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. stock — shares
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. wake — a trail
  20. craft — a skill
  21. field — for sport
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. bore — to drill

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