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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. drill — army training
  3. sharp — clever
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. vault — a safe
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. field — for sport
  9. spell — letters
  10. spring — the season
  11. field — farmland
  12. drill — the tool
  13. spell — magic
  14. drill — a practice
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — a coil

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