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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wake — a trail
  3. field — a subject
  4. clip — a video
  5. fall — to drop
  6. clip — to cut
  7. staff — a stick
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. field — farmland
  11. staff — employees
  12. field — for sport
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. fall — the season
  20. staff — employees
  21. track — a song
  22. clip — for paper
  23. mine — for digging
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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