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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. charge — a price
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. game — a match
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bound — obliged
  8. tear — from crying
  9. field — for sport
  10. charge — electricity
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bound — certain
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bound — tied together
  17. file — a document
  18. game — wild animals
  19. charge — in control
  20. mate — a partner
  21. tear — from crying
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. mate — to breed
  24. field — a subject

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