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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. vault — a safe
  3. rest — what's left
  4. ground — a position
  5. field — for sport
  6. cue — a hint
  7. rule — a law
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. field — farmland
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cue — a signal
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. rule — government
  16. ground — crushed
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. cue — for pool
  21. ground — the earth
  22. rest — a break
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. wound — an injury

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