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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fine — high quality
  5. fine — all right
  6. content — the amount
  7. fall — to drop
  8. land — to come down
  9. fall — to drop
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. content — happy
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. cap — of ice
  15. land — ground
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. tear — from crying
  18. land — a country
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. fall — the season
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cap — a lid

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