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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — for sport
  3. season — in sport
  4. rule — a law
  5. season — of the year
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mate — to breed
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bear — the animal
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. mate — a partner
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rule — government
  19. cap — of ice
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. cap — a lid
  23. field — a subject
  24. season — to add flavour

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