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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. file — a tool
  3. field — for sport
  4. chest — of your body
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. content — the amount
  7. rest — what's left
  8. deal — to handle
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. file — a document
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. date — the fruit
  17. file — a line of people
  18. content — happy
  19. rest — what's left
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. chest — of your body
  22. field — a subject
  23. chest — a box
  24. rest — a break

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