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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. bear — the animal
  4. field — for sport
  5. scale — in music
  6. track — a song
  7. ground — crushed
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bear — the animal
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — hasty
  13. field — farmland
  14. track — to keep track
  15. cap — a hat
  16. scale — size or range
  17. ground — a position
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. ground — the earth
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. field — a subject
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cap — of ice
  24. track — a path

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