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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. field — a subject
  3. suit — in cards
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. suit — to fit
  6. board — to get on
  7. rash — hasty
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. tear — from crying
  11. field — for sport
  12. row — to paddle
  13. field — farmland
  14. tear — to rip
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. tear — from crying
  19. dip — to sink
  20. rash — a series
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — a line
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. board — a committee

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