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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. field — a subject
  3. net — in sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. dip — to sink
  6. net — after costs
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. land — to come down
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. net — for catching
  13. field — for sport
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. row — a line
  16. rest — a break
  17. land — ground
  18. land — a country
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rest — what's left
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. racket — for tennis

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