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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. field — for sport
  3. mug — to rob
  4. field — farmland
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stand — to bear
  8. bound — obliged
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — to tease
  11. present — the time now
  12. bound — certain
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — crushed
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. present — there
  17. mug — a face
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. kid — child
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. present — a gift
  22. field — a subject
  23. bound — tied together
  24. mug — a cup

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