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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. track — a song
  3. field — a subject
  4. present — the time now
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — for sport
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. last — final
  12. bound — obliged
  13. last — to go on
  14. track — a path
  15. capital — a city
  16. bore — to drill
  17. present — there
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. vault — a safe
  20. bound — tied together
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bore — to tire
  23. last — finally
  24. bound — certain

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