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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. land — ground
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. field — a subject
  7. pitch — completely
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. field — for sport
  13. land — a country
  14. field — farmland
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. fall — the season
  18. land — to come down

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