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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. board — to get on
  3. spring — the season
  4. track — a song
  5. field — farmland
  6. spring — a coil
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. current — electric
  11. current — of water
  12. field — a subject
  13. bass — low music
  14. board — a committee
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. spring — of water
  17. bass — the fish
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. current — happening now
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. field — for sport
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. arm — a part of something

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