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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 120 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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. drill — army training
  3. vault — a safe
  4. cell — a phone
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — the tool
  9. mate — a friend
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — help
  17. field — a subject
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. field — for sport
  20. rule — government
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. plane — a tool
  24. rule — a law

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