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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — of a river
  4. pit — in a race
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. last — final
  10. bank — for money
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. last — finally
  15. pit — a hole
  16. clip — for paper
  17. field — farmland
  18. last — to go on
  19. season — of the year
  20. pound — a weight
  21. foot — a measure
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. clip — a video
  24. clip — to cut

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