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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. tear — from crying
  3. spring — of water
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. club — for dancing
  11. board — a committee
  12. club — for golf
  13. board — to get on
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. club — a group
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. tear — to rip
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. wake — a trail
  22. spring — a coil
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — the season

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