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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. season — in sport
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. dip — to sink
  6. field — for sport
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. field — a subject
  9. press — to push
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — shares
  12. rest — what's left
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rest — what's left
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. field — farmland
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. rest — a break
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — a publisher
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. season — of the year

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