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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 116 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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. ground — a position
  3. field — farmland
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. craft — boats
  6. drill — army training
  7. field — a subject
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ground — the earth
  10. degree — from a university
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. dip — to sink
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. drill — a practice
  16. track — a path
  17. field — for sport
  18. drill — the tool
  19. craft — a skill
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. degree — temperature
  23. ground — crushed
  24. dip — to dunk

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