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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 · saw · fall · sharp · plane · field · root · tear

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fall — to drop
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. fall — the season
  5. root — of a plant
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. root — the cause
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. tear — from crying
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fall — to drop
  15. field — farmland
  16. tear — to rip
  17. saw — the tool
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. root — of a word
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. field — a subject
  22. plane — a tool
  23. tear — from crying
  24. saw — the tool

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