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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. field — for sport
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pit — a hole
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. field — a subject
  13. staff — a stick
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tear — from crying
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. lie — to recline
  21. pit — in a race
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. tear — from crying
  24. straw — a straw man

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