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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. firm — a company
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. file — a line of people
  5. root — of a plant
  6. file — a tool
  7. lie — to recline
  8. bulb — for light
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. kid — to tease
  11. field — farmland
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. court — of law
  14. field — for sport
  15. file — a document
  16. firm — decided
  17. firm — steady
  18. root — of a word
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. kid — child
  21. bulb — for light
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. root — the cause

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