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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — the fish
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. current — electric
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bass — low music
  8. rush — hurry
  9. current — happening now
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — obliged
  13. fall — the season
  14. field — a subject
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. lie — to recline
  18. bound — certain
  19. current — of water
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. field — for sport
  24. lie — an untruth

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