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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. field — a subject
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. ground — a position
  7. field — for sport
  8. pitch — completely
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. plane — a tool
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chest — a box
  15. lie — to recline
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chip — for betting
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. field — farmland
  22. sharp — clever
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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