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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. key — in music
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. branch — a division
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — from a university
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. kid — to tease
  12. season — of the year
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kid — child
  15. key — for a lock
  16. season — in sport
  17. track — a path
  18. degree — an amount
  19. track — a song
  20. key — the most important part
  21. field — a subject
  22. track — to keep track
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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