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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 120 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. wound — an injury
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. game — a match
  6. ground — the earth
  7. field — farmland
  8. game — wild animals
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. field — for sport
  12. ground — a position
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. lean — to bend
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. field — a subject
  21. ground — crushed
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. mouse — the animal

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