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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: game · hand · season · craft · jam · can · bore · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hand — help
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. field — a subject
  9. season — in sport
  10. hand — in cards
  11. field — farmland
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. bore — to tire
  18. season — of the year
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. craft — a skill
  21. bore — to drill
  22. can — a tin
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. craft — boats

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