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

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. vault — a safe
  3. ground — a position
  4. stand — to bear
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. present — the time now
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. field — for sport
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. ground — the earth
  14. drill — army training
  15. field — farmland
  16. present — there
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. field — a subject
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — the tool
  21. ground — crushed
  22. wind — moving air
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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