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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. fork — in a road
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. field — for sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. root — the cause
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ground — crushed
  19. field — farmland
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. ground — the earth
  23. root — of a word
  24. ground — a position

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