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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. track — a path
  4. field — for sport
  5. ground — a position
  6. last — finally
  7. field — farmland
  8. ground — the earth
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — government
  11. track — to keep track
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pit — in a race
  14. ground — crushed
  15. field — a subject
  16. track — a song
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. rule — a law

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