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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: rock · fall · leaves · dip · hand · degree · chest · field

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. field — farmland
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. dip — to sink
  5. chest — a box
  6. chest — of your body
  7. field — a subject
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. field — for sport
  10. chest — of your body
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fall — the season
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — in cards
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rock — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. fall — to drop
  21. degree — temperature
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. rock — a stone

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