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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. field — a subject
  4. club — for golf
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. tear — from crying
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — a group
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. field — farmland
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. tear — to rip
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. rock — a stone
  19. rule — government
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. game — wild animals
  22. tear — from crying
  23. game — a match
  24. rock — 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