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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: rest · content · field · bulb · pit · straw · rash · season

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. field — a subject
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. field — for sport
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. field — farmland
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rash — hasty
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. pit — in a race
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — happy
  14. season — in sport
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. season — of the year
  18. pit — a hole
  19. rest — a break
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rash — a series
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. bulb — for light
  24. content — the amount

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