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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. field — for sport
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. cue — for pool
  5. rush — hurry
  6. season — of the year
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. tear — from crying
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. mark — a grade
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — in sport
  15. tear — to rip
  16. sharp — clever
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. field — a subject
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mark — a trace
  21. cue — a signal
  22. cue — a hint
  23. field — farmland
  24. rush — a thrill

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