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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: straw · last · mug · sharp · field · mark · tear · bulb

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mug — to rob
  3. field — farmland
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bulb — for light
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. mug — a face
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. mark — a grade
  13. last — to go on
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. field — a subject
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. mark — a trace
  18. sharp — clever
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. bulb — for light
  22. mug — a cup
  23. tear — to rip
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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