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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. field — for sport
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. firm — decided
  7. bound — obliged
  8. hand — in cards
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. bound — tied together
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. firm — a company
  14. vault — a safe
  15. firm — steady
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. field — a subject
  18. degree — an amount
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. field — farmland
  22. hand — help
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — temperature

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