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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: staff · racket · rule · leaves · chest · spell · track · field

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rule — government
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. chest — a box
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. track — to keep track
  9. staff — employees
  10. field — farmland
  11. track — a song
  12. spell — letters
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. spell — a short time
  15. field — a subject
  16. staff — employees
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. chest — of your body
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. field — for sport
  22. rule — a law
  23. spell — magic
  24. staff — a stick

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