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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. firm — decided
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. scale — size or range
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. can — a tin
  10. firm — a company
  11. degree — temperature
  12. kid — to tease
  13. firm — steady
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. field — a subject
  17. degree — from a university
  18. scale — in music
  19. kid — child
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. degree — an amount
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. field — for sport
  24. fine — all right

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