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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 · scale · root · squash · field · fall · staff · track

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. field — a subject
  3. track — to keep track
  4. root — the cause
  5. track — a song
  6. field — for sport
  7. wound — an injury
  8. staff — a stick
  9. track — a path
  10. field — farmland
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. scale — size or range
  15. staff — employees
  16. scale — in music
  17. fall — to drop
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the sport
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fall — the season

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