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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. mate — to breed
  3. club — for golf
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. track — to keep track
  6. club — a group
  7. mate — a partner
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wound — an injury
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. rest — a break
  13. field — for sport
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. vault — a safe
  16. rest — what's left
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. field — a subject
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. mate — a friend
  23. wound — an injury
  24. field — farmland

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