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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. land — to come down
  4. file — a document
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. mark — a grade
  7. land — a country
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. mark — a trace
  11. cell — in biology
  12. craft — boats
  13. file — a tool
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. craft — a skill
  17. file — a line of people
  18. land — ground
  19. plane — a tool
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cell — a phone
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — for sport

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