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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cap — of ice
  3. field — for sport
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cap — a hat
  7. fall — the season
  8. spell — a short time
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. field — farmland
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. lie — to recline
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. cap — a lid
  21. fall — to drop
  22. spell — magic
  23. field — a subject
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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