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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. vault — a safe
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. face — part of the head
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. face — to confront
  8. pop — soda
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. pop — to visit
  12. suit — clothes
  13. degree — from a university
  14. cell — a phone
  15. suit — in cards
  16. degree — an amount
  17. suit — to fit
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. field — for sport
  20. cell — in biology
  21. face — to point toward
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pop — music
  24. mouse — the animal

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