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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 120 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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — farmland
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. field — for sport
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. press — a publisher
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — a signal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. dip — to sink
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. press — newspapers
  17. tear — from crying
  18. press — to push
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. tear — to rip
  21. cue — for pool
  22. capital — a city
  23. foot — a measure
  24. capital — money

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