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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cap — a hat
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. field — a subject
  5. cap — of ice
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. ground — the earth
  10. field — for sport
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. ground — a position
  13. rule — government
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. ball — a dance
  16. cap — a lid
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ground — crushed
  19. root — of a plant
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. rule — a law
  22. branch — a division
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — the cause

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