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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. swing — in golf
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. field — a subject
  8. swing — to play on
  9. march — the month
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. march — music
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. squash — the sport
  14. march — the month
  15. cell — in biology
  16. squash — to crush
  17. swing — music
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. present — there
  20. season — in sport
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. present — a gift
  23. season — of the year
  24. cell — a phone

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