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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. fork — in a road
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bat — the animal
  7. court — for sport
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. court — of a king
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. stem — to come from
  13. court — of law
  14. field — a subject
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. field — farmland
  24. date — the fruit

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