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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. cap — a hat
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. field — a subject
  9. scale — in music
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. field — farmland
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wake — a trail
  23. scale — size or range
  24. cap — of ice

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