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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bear — the animal
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. lie — to recline
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stem — to come from
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. degree — an amount
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — a subject
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. bound — obliged
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bound — certain
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bound — tied together
  23. degree — from a university
  24. patient — a sick person

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