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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. roll — a list
  6. plane — a tool
  7. chest — of your body
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. roll — a cake
  10. band — a ring
  11. chest — of your body
  12. saw — the tool
  13. field — a subject
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. craft — a skill
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. band — a music group
  19. craft — boats
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. chest — a box
  22. field — farmland
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. plane — in geometry

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