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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. mate — a partner
  3. court — of law
  4. bass — low music
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. field — for sport
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. ground — a position
  10. field — farmland
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. court — for sport
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bass — the fish
  17. ground — the earth
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. court — of a king
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. bear — the animal
  24. mate — to breed

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