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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. net — in sport
  3. mate — a friend
  4. fork — in a road
  5. field — for sport
  6. net — for catching
  7. stock — shares
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. field — farmland
  11. kick — in football
  12. mate — a partner
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. stock — goods
  15. field — a subject
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. season — in sport
  21. mate — to breed
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. season — of the year
  24. net — after costs

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