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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. game — a match
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. shower — to wash
  9. sharp — clever
  10. dip — to sink
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. swing — in golf
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. swing — music
  16. field — for sport
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. field — farmland
  21. game — wild animals
  22. shower — rain
  23. swing — to play on
  24. safe — out of danger

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