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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. field — for sport
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. field — a subject
  8. court — for sport
  9. bank — for money
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. kid — child
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bank — for money
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. kid — to tease
  16. court — of law
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. degree — an amount
  19. field — farmland
  20. court — of a king
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bank — of a river
  23. degree — from a university
  24. staff — employees

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