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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. last — final
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. root — of a plant
  9. field — for sport
  10. rash — hasty
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. rash — a series
  14. last — finally
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. root — the cause
  20. root — of a word
  21. last — to go on
  22. bear — the animal
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. field — a subject

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