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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. field — a subject
  4. track — a path
  5. current — of water
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. clip — to cut
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cell — a phone
  10. clip — for paper
  11. field — for sport
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. clip — a video
  14. current — happening now
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. current — electric
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pitch — completely
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cell — in biology
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. field — farmland
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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