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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mug — a cup
  6. fine — high quality
  7. track — to keep track
  8. mug — to rob
  9. chest — a box
  10. mug — a face
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fine — all right
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. field — a subject
  18. lie — to recline
  19. cap — a hat
  20. field — farmland
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. wound — an injury
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. chest — of your body

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