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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. bass — the fish
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. field — for sport
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bass — low music
  12. file — a line of people
  13. last — final
  14. file — a document
  15. bear — the animal
  16. last — finally
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. field — a subject
  19. last — to go on
  20. roll — a cake
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. roll — a list
  24. file — a tool

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