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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. file — a tool
  3. field — farmland
  4. file — a line of people
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — a break
  9. field — a subject
  10. stock — goods
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chest — a box
  13. field — for sport
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. file — a document
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. stock — shares
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitch — completely

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