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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 120 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. mug — a face
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. charge — electricity
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. shower — rain
  11. mug — to rob
  12. wake — a trail
  13. scale — in music
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. charge — a price
  16. mug — a cup
  17. charge — in control
  18. shower — to wash
  19. scale — size or range
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. field — for sport
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. field — farmland

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