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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. fine — high quality
  3. net — after costs
  4. face — to point toward
  5. rule — a law
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. spell — a short time
  8. fine — all right
  9. field — for sport
  10. root — of a plant
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — shares
  13. face — part of the head
  14. net — in sport
  15. spell — magic
  16. face — to confront
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. root — the cause
  19. net — for catching
  20. field — a subject
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. spell — letters
  23. root — of a word
  24. rule — government

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