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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. firm — a company
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. chair — a leader
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. pass — a permit
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — of the year
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. game — wild animals
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. field — for sport
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. firm — decided
  22. cold — an illness
  23. season — in sport
  24. firm — steady

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