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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. tear — from crying
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. ground — crushed
  5. track — to keep track
  6. date — the fruit
  7. ground — the earth
  8. field — farmland
  9. ground — a position
  10. track — a path
  11. swing — in golf
  12. fine — high quality
  13. track — a song
  14. field — for sport
  15. swing — to play on
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. tear — from crying
  20. swing — music
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. field — a subject
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. tear — to rip

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