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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 120 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: hide · current · chip · ruler · spring · bore · lie · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. spring — the season
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. field — a subject
  6. chip — for betting
  7. chip — to eat
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. current — happening now
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to tire
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. field — farmland
  18. bore — to drill
  19. spring — of water
  20. current — of water
  21. lie — to recline
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. current — electric

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