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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. squash — the sport
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. face — to confront
  6. field — a subject
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. face — to point toward
  9. squash — to crush
  10. shower — rain
  11. branch — a division
  12. scale — size or range
  13. face — part of the head
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — to wash
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. field — for sport
  20. track — a song
  21. track — a path
  22. field — farmland
  23. scale — in music
  24. track — to keep track

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