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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. mug — to rob
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. shower — rain
  12. suit — in cards
  13. mug — a cup
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wax — to grow
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. court — of law
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. suit — clothes
  20. suit — to fit
  21. kick — in football
  22. mug — a face
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. jam — in traffic

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