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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. current — of water
  3. land — to come down
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. field — a subject
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. march — the month
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. field — for sport
  10. march — the month
  11. land — ground
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. march — music
  14. current — happening now
  15. field — farmland
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. pit — a hole
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. land — a country
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. fork — in a road
  23. current — electric
  24. pit — in a race

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