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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: field · cap · content · file · swing · bulb · season · bark

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. file — a tool
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bulb — for light
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. cap — a hat
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bulb — for light
  12. field — farmland
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. content — the amount
  18. file — a document
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cap — of ice
  21. season — of the year
  22. content — happy
  23. cap — a lid
  24. swing — music

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