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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: clip · sharp · ground · mark · rest · field · date · jam

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mark — a grade
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. field — for sport
  6. rest — what's left
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. field — farmland
  9. clip — a video
  10. field — a subject
  11. rest — a break
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. clip — for paper
  15. ground — crushed
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. date — the fruit
  18. ground — a position
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — what's left
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. ground — the earth
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. sharp — clever

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