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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. tear — from crying
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — for digging
  5. ball — a great time
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. field — farmland
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. tear — to rip
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. field — a subject
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. last — to go on
  17. tube — a container
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. vault — a safe
  20. last — finally
  21. tube — the underground
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. last — final
  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