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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. field — a subject
  3. net — for catching
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. field — for sport
  8. drill — the tool
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. drill — a practice
  11. net — in sport
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. field — farmland
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. net — after costs
  17. drill — army training
  18. lie — to recline

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