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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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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: march · hand · field · lie · ball · mouse · saw · mark

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mark — a trace
  5. hand — in cards
  6. march — the month
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. field — farmland
  9. lie — to recline
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. ball — a dance
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. ball — a great time
  15. march — the month
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mark — a grade
  18. saw — the tool
  19. field — for sport
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. march — music
  23. hand — help
  24. mouse — the animal

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