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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.

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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. field — for sport
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. tear — to rip
  9. fork — in a road
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mark — a grade
  14. field — farmland
  15. chip — for betting
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. field — a subject
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. wax — to grow

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