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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. can — to be able to
  3. field — for sport
  4. pit — in a race
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mug — a face
  7. pit — a hole
  8. ground — the earth
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. craft — boats
  11. ground — a position
  12. hand — in cards
  13. can — a tin
  14. field — farmland
  15. ground — crushed
  16. march — the month
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. field — a subject
  19. march — music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. march — the month
  22. craft — a skill
  23. can — a tin
  24. mug — to rob

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