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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. field — farmland
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. foot — a measure
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. field — a subject
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — the season
  14. field — for sport
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. track — to keep track
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. spring — of water
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. track — a path
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. lie — to recline
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. hide — to keep secret

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