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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. key — for a lock
  3. field — for sport
  4. key — in music
  5. game — wild animals
  6. field — a subject
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. land — to come down
  12. game — a match
  13. cue — a signal
  14. cue — a hint
  15. pound — a weight
  16. land — a country
  17. key — the most important part
  18. land — ground
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. cue — for pool
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. chest — of your body
  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