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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bass — low music
  3. pass — a permit
  4. content — happy
  5. field — farmland
  6. bass — the fish
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. land — ground
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. field — a subject
  12. land — to come down
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. stand — to bear
  19. field — for sport
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. land — a country
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. bass — the instrument

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