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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. field — farmland
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. march — music
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. march — the month
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. march — the month
  16. field — for sport
  17. land — ground
  18. field — a subject
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. root — the cause
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. root — of a word
  23. root — of a plant
  24. sharp — with an edge

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