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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
468
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: kid · field · last · track · hide · fork · face · hand

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — to confront
  5. last — final
  6. last — finally
  7. field — farmland
  8. kid — to tease
  9. hand — in cards
  10. fork — in a road
  11. track — to keep track
  12. track — a path
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. field — for sport
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. last — to go on
  20. track — a song
  21. hand — help
  22. face — part of the head
  23. field — a subject
  24. hide — to keep secret

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