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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ball — a great time
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. spell — letters
  6. field — a subject
  7. spell — magic
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. pitch — completely
  16. field — for sport
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cold — not warm
  21. foot — a measure
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. spell — a short time
  24. ball — a dance

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