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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. rest — what's left
  3. field — a subject
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. field — for sport
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. face — to point toward
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. chair — a leader
  13. vault — a safe
  14. face — to confront
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. pound — a weight
  17. face — part of the head
  18. last — final
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. deal — to handle
  22. last — to go on
  23. field — farmland
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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