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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: lie · cell · wave · mine · straw · roll · track · field

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. lie — to recline
  4. field — for sport
  5. cell — a phone
  6. mine — for digging
  7. roll — a list
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. track — a path
  12. track — to keep track
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. field — farmland
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cell — in biology
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. roll — a cake
  21. field — a subject
  22. track — a song
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. wave — of the sea

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