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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: band · club · cell · land · field · rash · lie · saw

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. field — a subject
  3. land — ground
  4. club — for dancing
  5. saw — the tool
  6. cell — in biology
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. club — for golf
  9. field — for sport
  10. rash — a series
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a music group
  13. club — a group
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cell — a phone
  18. band — a ring
  19. lie — to recline
  20. land — a country
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rash — hasty
  23. land — to come down
  24. field — farmland

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