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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. dip — to sink
  3. mate — a partner
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. field — farmland
  8. tube — a container
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. tear — to rip
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. tube — the underground
  20. field — for sport
  21. mate — to breed
  22. mate — a friend
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lie — an untruth

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