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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. mate — a partner
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. mate — a friend
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. field — for sport
  7. mate — to breed
  8. branch — a division
  9. field — a subject
  10. net — for catching
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. net — in sport
  13. kick — in football
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. fork — in a road
  18. pop — to visit
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. pop — soda
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. net — after costs
  23. stand — to bear
  24. pop — music

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