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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. court — for sport
  3. shower — to wash
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rock — a stone
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. rock — music
  11. rest — what's left
  12. stand — to bear
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. court — of law
  16. field — for sport
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. wake — a trail
  20. field — farmland
  21. court — of a king
  22. rest — a break
  23. shower — rain
  24. lie — to recline

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