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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. bore — to drill
  5. capital — money
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. season — in sport
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. present — a gift
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. present — the time now
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. present — there
  17. field — farmland
  18. fork — in a road
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. season — of the year
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. capital — a city
  23. bore — to tire
  24. chair — a leader

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