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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: craft · game · bat · root · file · field · date · track

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. root — the cause
  3. field — farmland
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. file — a tool
  6. craft — a skill
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bat — the animal
  9. date — the fruit
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. field — a subject
  13. craft — boats
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. field — for sport
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. track — a path
  20. root — of a word
  21. file — a line of people
  22. track — to keep track
  23. track — a song
  24. game — a match

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