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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. field — farmland
  3. can — a tin
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — the time now
  7. date — the fruit
  8. spell — magic
  9. toast — bread
  10. game — a match
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — to be able to
  15. spell — letters
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. spell — a short time
  23. game — wild animals
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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