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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. date — the fruit
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. field — farmland
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. board — a committee
  8. mark — a grade
  9. spring — the season
  10. mark — a trace
  11. spring — a coil
  12. vault — a safe
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. field — for sport
  15. chip — to eat
  16. board — to get on
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. field — a subject
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. chip — for betting
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. board — a flat piece

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