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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pit · bulb · rest · track · safe · field · bass · cold

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. rest — what's left
  3. track — a song
  4. bulb — for light
  5. track — to keep track
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — for sport
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. pit — in a race
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bulb — for light
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. track — a path
  19. field — a subject
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the fish
  24. cold — an illness

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