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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  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 — for sport
  2. file — a document
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. row — a line
  8. dip — to sink
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. plane — a tool
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. field — a subject
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. lie — to recline
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. row — to paddle
  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