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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mug — a cup
  3. court — of law
  4. present — there
  5. bound — tied together
  6. scale — in music
  7. ball — a great time
  8. mug — a face
  9. court — for sport
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bound — certain
  13. scale — size or range
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. bound — obliged
  17. mug — to rob
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. hand — help
  21. court — of a king
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. ball — a dance

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