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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: wound · march · cabinet · lie · mark · fall · field · root

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. march — music
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. field — farmland
  5. root — of a word
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wound — an injury
  8. march — the month
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. root — the cause
  11. mark — a grade
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. march — the month
  19. field — a subject
  20. wound — an injury
  21. field — for sport
  22. fall — the season
  23. mark — a trace
  24. root — of a plant

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