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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 124 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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. field — farmland
  4. ground — crushed
  5. cell — in biology
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. track — a song
  9. cell — a phone
  10. track — to keep track
  11. date — the fruit
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. plane — a tool
  14. chair — a leader
  15. last — finally
  16. field — for sport
  17. last — to go on
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. track — a path
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — a position
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. field — a subject
  24. last — final

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