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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. lie — to recline
  4. face — part of the head
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. field — farmland
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bound — tied together
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. swing — music
  12. face — to confront
  13. deal — to handle
  14. swing — in golf
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bound — certain
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. face — to point toward
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. swing — to play on
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. bound — obliged

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