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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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. cap — of ice
  4. bound — tied together
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. bound — certain
  7. branch — a division
  8. firm — decided
  9. mark — a trace
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. mark — a grade
  12. firm — steady
  13. cap — a hat
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. squash — to crush
  17. field — farmland
  18. rest — a break
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. field — for sport
  21. cap — a lid
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bound — obliged
  24. rest — what's left

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