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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. field — a subject
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. field — farmland
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stem — to come from
  11. field — for sport
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a song
  15. content — the amount
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. saw — the tool
  20. file — a tool
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. content — happy
  23. lie — to recline
  24. file — a document

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