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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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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: suit · field · temple · stick · fork · file · tear · board

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. board — a committee
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. field — a subject
  5. file — a document
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. field — for sport
  9. suit — clothes
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fork — in a road
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. tear — to rip
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. file — a tool
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. suit — in cards
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. file — a line of people
  22. suit — to fit
  23. board — to get on
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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