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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. mark — a trace
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. field — farmland
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mark — a grade
  11. wake — a trail
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. drill — the tool
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. squash — the sport
  19. drill — a practice
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. lie — to recline
  22. field — a subject
  23. drill — army training
  24. wake — before a funeral

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