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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. wound — an injury
  7. field — a subject
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wound — an injury
  11. vault — a safe
  12. face — part of the head
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. face — to confront
  15. field — for sport
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. face — to point toward
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

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