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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. land — to come down
  4. track — a path
  5. field — a subject
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. land — a country
  10. field — farmland
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. present — a gift
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. hand — help
  16. saw — the tool
  17. track — a song
  18. present — the time now
  19. land — ground
  20. field — for sport
  21. hand — in cards
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. present — there

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