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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. mug — a face
  3. field — a subject
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mug — to rob
  6. field — for sport
  7. land — a country
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. land — to come down
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bound — certain
  13. field — farmland
  14. land — ground
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. stem — to come from
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bound — tied together
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bound — obliged
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. mug — a cup

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