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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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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rule — government
  5. rash — hasty
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. content — the amount
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. field — for sport
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. content — happy
  17. foot — a measure
  18. rule — a law
  19. rash — a series
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. date — the fruit
  23. capital — money
  24. date — on the calendar

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