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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. current — happening now
  3. field — for sport
  4. current — electric
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. press — newspapers
  7. hand — in cards
  8. current — of water
  9. press — a publisher
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. bound — tied together
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. field — a subject
  15. bound — certain
  16. wound — an injury
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wound — an injury
  20. hand — help
  21. press — to push
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — a container
  24. bound — obliged

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