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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 116 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's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. craft — a skill
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cue — a hint
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cue — for pool
  8. field — for sport
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. craft — boats
  13. chip — to eat
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. tear — from crying
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. saw — the tool
  20. field — farmland
  21. saw — the tool
  22. tear — from crying
  23. chip — for betting
  24. craft — a handicraft

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