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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. spell — letters
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. tube — a container
  5. charge — in control
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tube — the underground
  8. charge — a price
  9. field — for sport
  10. last — final
  11. spell — a short time
  12. charge — electricity
  13. last — finally
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. vault — a safe
  16. field — farmland
  17. last — to go on
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. spell — magic
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. prune — to trim
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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