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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. cap — of ice
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. clip — for paper
  5. field — for sport
  6. clip — a video
  7. bulb — for light
  8. squash — the sport
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. field — farmland
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. clip — to cut
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a tool
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cap — a lid
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. file — a line of people
  24. squash — to crush

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