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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. lie — to recline
  5. field — farmland
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. charge — a price
  8. staff — employees
  9. band — a ring
  10. rash — a series
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. staff — employees
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. charge — electricity
  18. rash — hasty
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. charge — in control
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. staff — a stick
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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