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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: hide · field · mark · bass · land · file · bowl · cell

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. cell — a phone
  3. file — a document
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. field — for sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — a trace
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. file — a tool
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. field — a subject
  16. bass — the fish
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. file — a line of people
  20. land — to come down
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. land — ground
  23. field — farmland
  24. bass — low music

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