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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — a hat
  4. last — finally
  5. field — farmland
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. field — a subject
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. track — a song
  12. last — to go on
  13. track — to keep track
  14. mark — a grade
  15. last — final
  16. bat — the animal
  17. can — to be able to
  18. mark — a trace
  19. field — for sport
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. rule — a law
  23. track — a path
  24. rule — government

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