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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. field — for sport
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. field — a subject
  5. bear — the animal
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. band — a ring
  10. object — a thing
  11. stock — shares
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. roll — a list
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. field — farmland
  21. band — a music group
  22. object — an aim
  23. roll — a cake
  24. bear — the animal

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