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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 116 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: lie · wake · bear · firm · cell · spring · current · field

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. lie — to recline
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. spring — a coil
  6. firm — a company
  7. current — of water
  8. bear — the animal
  9. firm — decided
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cell — in biology
  12. current — happening now
  13. wake — a trail
  14. field — farmland
  15. bear — the animal
  16. current — electric
  17. spring — the season
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. spring — of water
  24. firm — steady

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