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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. ground — the earth
  3. file — a document
  4. ground — crushed
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. field — farmland
  7. file — a tool
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — electricity
  12. file — a line of people
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. rash — a series
  16. court — of a king
  17. rash — hasty
  18. court — of law
  19. charge — in control
  20. court — for sport
  21. ground — a position
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. field — a subject
  24. rash — on the skin

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