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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 120 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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. field — farmland
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. can — a tin
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. ball — a great time
  11. field — for sport
  12. branch — a division
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. ball — a dance
  15. cold — an illness
  16. plane — a tool
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. cold — not warm
  19. can — a tin
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. can — to be able to
  22. field — a subject
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. branch — of a bank

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