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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. net — after costs
  3. stem — to come from
  4. face — to confront
  5. track — to keep track
  6. suit — in cards
  7. net — for catching
  8. can — to be able to
  9. face — to point toward
  10. field — for sport
  11. court — for sport
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. court — of a king
  14. can — a tin
  15. court — of law
  16. suit — to fit
  17. net — in sport
  18. suit — clothes
  19. face — part of the head
  20. field — farmland
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. can — a tin
  23. track — a song
  24. field — a subject

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