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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. field — farmland
  3. swing — to play on
  4. current — happening now
  5. spring — a coil
  6. plane — a tool
  7. swing — music
  8. current — electric
  9. swing — in golf
  10. firm — steady
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. spring — the season
  15. current — of water
  16. firm — a company
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. spring — of water

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