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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. land — to come down
  4. dip — to sink
  5. saw — the tool
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. field — a subject
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. branch — a division
  13. chest — of your body
  14. season — in sport
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. season — of the year
  17. land — ground
  18. field — farmland
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. saw — the tool
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mark — a grade
  24. land — a country

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