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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: ground · chest · mine · fork · current · field · track · bowl

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. field — for sport
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. field — farmland
  5. current — of water
  6. current — electric
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. field — a subject
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ground — crushed
  12. fork — in a road
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. chest — of your body
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. ground — a position
  19. current — happening now
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. track — a song
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. mine — for digging
  24. chest — a box

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