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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. field — farmland
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. suit — to fit
  5. mine — for digging
  6. board — to get on
  7. rush — hurry
  8. suit — in cards
  9. firm — a company
  10. suit — clothes
  11. board — a committee
  12. present — the time now
  13. firm — decided
  14. game — wild animals
  15. field — for sport
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. present — a gift
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. present — there
  22. field — a subject
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. firm — steady

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