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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. chest — a box
  5. last — finally
  6. fine — high quality
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. sharp — clever
  10. fine — all right
  11. chest — of your body
  12. court — of a king
  13. chest — of your body
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. last — final
  18. bank — for money
  19. bank — of a river
  20. field — farmland
  21. bank — for money
  22. last — to go on
  23. kick — in football
  24. fine — a penalty

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