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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've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bulb — for light
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. degree — temperature
  5. spell — a short time
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. net — in sport
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. field — for sport
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. net — after costs
  13. degree — from a university
  14. rash — a series
  15. field — farmland
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. rash — hasty
  18. net — for catching
  19. spell — magic
  20. spell — letters
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. bulb — for light
  23. degree — an amount
  24. calf — a young animal

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