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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rule — a law
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. ball — a great time
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — for sport
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wind — moving air
  12. vault — a safe
  13. snap — to click
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — government
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. ball — a dance
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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