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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. charge — a price
  3. suit — in cards
  4. mate — a partner
  5. field — a subject
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. suit — clothes
  8. tube — the underground
  9. suit — to fit
  10. file — a document
  11. charge — electricity
  12. court — of law
  13. mate — to breed
  14. tube — a container
  15. file — a tool
  16. field — farmland
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. file — a line of people
  20. charge — in control
  21. court — for sport
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. court — of a king
  24. mate — a friend

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