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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. field — for sport
  3. staff — employees
  4. face — to confront
  5. staff — a stick
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. vault — a safe
  8. staff — employees
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. field — a subject
  11. chest — of your body
  12. lean — to bend
  13. chest — a box
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. face — to point toward
  17. track — to keep track
  18. field — farmland
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. track — a path
  21. kid — to tease
  22. track — a song
  23. chest — of your body
  24. face — part of the head

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