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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. field — a subject
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. field — for sport
  5. fall — to drop
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. shower — rain
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. track — to keep track
  10. press — to push
  11. fall — to drop
  12. track — a path
  13. press — newspapers
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. fall — the season
  16. press — a publisher
  17. spring — a coil
  18. date — the fruit
  19. shower — to wash
  20. track — a song
  21. spring — the season
  22. field — farmland
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. spring — of water

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