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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. wound — an injury
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. mark — a trace
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. field — a subject
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. tube — a container
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — a position
  13. branch — a division
  14. field — farmland
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wound — an injury
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. ground — crushed
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. field — for sport
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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