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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a trace
  4. ball — a dance
  5. field — for sport
  6. mark — a grade
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. field — a subject
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. saw — the tool
  15. track — a song
  16. ball — a great time
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. ball — a round shape

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