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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. field — a subject
  3. current — electric
  4. field — farmland
  5. chest — of your body
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. current — happening now
  9. track — a path
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. track — to keep track
  13. chest — a box
  14. field — for sport
  15. object — a thing
  16. bass — the fish
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — to protest
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. current — of water
  23. chest — of your body
  24. track — a song

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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