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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. rest — what's left
  3. field — for sport
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. field — farmland
  6. scale — size or range
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rest — a break
  11. tear — from crying
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pop — soda
  15. plane — a tool
  16. rest — what's left
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. field — a subject
  19. pop — to visit
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. scale — in music
  22. lie — to recline
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pop — music

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