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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. field — farmland
  4. pop — soda
  5. net — for catching
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. net — in sport
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pop — music
  10. court — of a king
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. bear — the animal
  13. court — of law
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. net — after costs
  16. field — for sport
  17. object — a thing
  18. bear — the animal
  19. object — an aim
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. pop — to visit
  23. field — a subject
  24. object — to protest

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