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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. cell — a phone
  4. march — music
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. object — a thing
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. track — a path
  10. march — the month
  11. object — to protest
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. object — an aim
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. wind — moving air
  17. march — the month
  18. track — to keep track
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cell — in biology
  22. track — a song
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. racket — for tennis

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