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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cap — of ice
  4. court — for sport
  5. field — for sport
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. last — finally
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. cap — a hat
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. last — to go on
  12. cap — a lid
  13. court — of a king
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bound — certain
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. scale — in music
  19. last — final
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. court — of law
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bound — obliged

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