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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 120 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bound — certain
  4. season — of the year
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bound — obliged
  7. mate — a partner
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. field — for sport
  10. cue — a signal
  11. season — in sport
  12. cue — for pool
  13. mate — a friend
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bound — tied together
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — to grow
  22. mate — to breed
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. field — farmland

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