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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. firm — decided
  3. spring — of water
  4. field — farmland
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. firm — steady
  7. bulb — for light
  8. net — in sport
  9. file — a line of people
  10. field — for sport
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. file — a document
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. firm — a company
  15. row — a line
  16. net — after costs
  17. file — a tool
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. row — to paddle
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. net — for catching

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