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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  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. field — farmland
  2. land — ground
  3. ball — a great time
  4. field — for sport
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. land — to come down
  8. mark — a grade
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. object — an aim
  11. field — a subject
  12. spring — the season
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. land — a country
  16. object — to protest
  17. kid — child
  18. mark — a trace
  19. spring — a coil
  20. ball — a dance
  21. object — a thing
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. kid — to tease
  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