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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. degree — an amount
  3. mate — a partner
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. dip — to sink
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. mate — a friend
  10. field — farmland
  11. vault — a safe
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. mate — to breed
  19. degree — from a university
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. degree — temperature
  23. field — a subject
  24. pitcher — a jug

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