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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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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. field — a subject
  3. present — there
  4. present — the time now
  5. capital — a city
  6. present — a gift
  7. ball — a great time
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. season — in sport
  10. field — for sport
  11. face — to confront
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. cell — a phone
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cell — in biology
  19. field — farmland
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. season — of the year
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. capital — money
  24. vault — a safe

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