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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 120 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — farmland
  4. staff — employees
  5. fine — all right
  6. staff — a stick
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. lie — to recline
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. tear — from crying
  12. fall — the season
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. tear — to rip
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. field — a subject
  17. fall — to drop
  18. staff — employees
  19. tear — from crying
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fork — in a road
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. spring — the season

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