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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: chest · field · march · foot · mug · wound · bulb · track

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. foot — a measure
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bulb — for light
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. wound — an injury
  9. march — the month
  10. mug — to rob
  11. march — the month
  12. mug — a face
  13. march — music
  14. chest — of your body
  15. track — a path
  16. track — to keep track
  17. chest — a box
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. mug — a cup
  20. track — a song
  21. field — farmland
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. foot — the bottom

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