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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. suit — to fit
  3. field — farmland
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pop — to visit
  8. field — for sport
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. suit — in cards
  12. bound — certain
  13. stock — shares
  14. pop — soda
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. pop — music
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. suit — clothes
  20. cold — not warm
  21. snap — to click
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bound — tied together
  24. hide — to keep secret

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