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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. field — farmland
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. game — wild animals
  7. field — for sport
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. bass — low music
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. foot — a measure
  13. field — a subject
  14. game — a match
  15. wax — to grow
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bass — the fish
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wax — in the ear

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