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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. race — humankind
  3. field — farmland
  4. season — of the year
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. field — a subject
  8. squash — to crush
  9. mate — a partner
  10. spell — letters
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. race — the arms race
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — a short time
  16. ball — a dance
  17. race — a contest
  18. field — for sport
  19. season — in sport
  20. squash — the sport
  21. mate — to breed
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. ball — a great time
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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