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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. game — a match
  3. wound — an injury
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. present — a gift
  6. field — for sport
  7. root — of a plant
  8. field — a subject
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. root — the cause
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. field — farmland
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lie — to recline
  16. root — of a word
  17. saw — the tool
  18. present — the time now
  19. stock — goods
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. stock — shares
  22. game — wild animals
  23. present — there
  24. game — a kind of play

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