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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitch — completely
  10. clip — a video
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. tear — from crying
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — a measure
  18. cap — a hat
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. clip — to cut
  24. pitch — a sports field

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