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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 reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  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. bound — tied together
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. staff — employees
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. bound — certain
  9. pop — music
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. pop — to visit
  13. field — a subject
  14. staff — employees
  15. ball — a great time
  16. file — a tool
  17. pop — soda
  18. staff — a stick
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cell — in biology
  21. spring — a coil
  22. field — farmland
  23. cell — a phone
  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