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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 works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. field — for sport
  4. swing — in golf
  5. firm — steady
  6. content — happy
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. swing — to play on
  13. content — the amount
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. swing — music
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — in sport
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. firm — decided
  24. tear — from crying

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