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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. field — for sport
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ball — a great time
  6. wound — an injury
  7. content — happy
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. land — a country
  12. bank — for money
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. field — a subject
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. bat — the animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. wound — an injury
  23. land — ground
  24. ball — a dance

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