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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 116 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cap — of ice
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. content — the amount
  7. cap — a hat
  8. fork — in a road
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. cap — a lid
  16. field — for sport
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. file — a tool
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. content — happy

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