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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. field — for sport
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. season — in sport
  9. pass — a permit
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — music
  12. spring — a coil
  13. cue — for pool
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. field — farmland
  18. spring — the season
  19. pound — a weight
  20. season — of the year
  21. rock — a stone
  22. spring — of water
  23. field — a subject
  24. cue — a signal

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