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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 120 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: leaves · swing · content · field · wound · march · bulb · safe

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. march — the month
  4. wound — an injury
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. march — the month
  7. swing — in golf
  8. field — a subject
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. swing — to play on
  13. field — for sport
  14. bulb — for light
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — happy
  17. bulb — for light
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. swing — music
  20. march — music
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. field — farmland
  24. wound — an injury

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