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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. field — a subject
  3. file — a document
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — in a race
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. field — farmland
  13. kick — in football
  14. file — a line of people
  15. field — for sport
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bound — certain
  19. band — a ring
  20. bound — obliged
  21. file — a tool
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. rush — hurry
  24. bound — tied together

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