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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. track — to keep track
  3. chest — a box
  4. bear — the animal
  5. firm — steady
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. chest — of your body
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. field — a subject
  14. bear — the animal
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. field — for sport
  17. track — a path
  18. firm — decided
  19. vault — a safe
  20. track — a song
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — to tease
  24. firm — a company

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