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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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. season — of the year
  3. swing — in golf
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. march — the month
  6. bear — the animal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. march — music
  10. land — ground
  11. bear — the animal
  12. season — in sport
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. field — for sport
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. land — a country
  17. field — a subject
  18. game — a match
  19. land — to come down
  20. field — farmland
  21. game — wild animals
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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