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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. saw — the tool
  3. suit — in cards
  4. field — a subject
  5. club — a group
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. tear — from crying
  8. field — for sport
  9. tear — from crying
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — for dancing
  12. content — the amount
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. saw — the tool
  15. suit — clothes
  16. game — a match
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. game — wild animals
  19. content — happy
  20. tear — to rip
  21. suit — to fit
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. field — farmland
  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