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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's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bear — the animal
  6. field — for sport
  7. root — of a plant
  8. last — to go on
  9. field — farmland
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. mate — to breed
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. root — the cause
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mate — a partner
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. root — of a word

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