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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. shower — rain
  4. field — a subject
  5. firm — a company
  6. ball — a dance
  7. firm — decided
  8. field — for sport
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. season — in sport
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. shower — to wash
  14. pass — a permit
  15. bass — the fish
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. ball — a great time
  19. season — of the year
  20. field — farmland
  21. bass — low music
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — for digging

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