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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. object — to protest
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — a position
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. ground — crushed
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mark — a grade
  17. object — a thing
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. field — a subject
  20. pound — a weight
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. cap — of ice
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. object — an aim

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