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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. field — for sport
  3. present — a gift
  4. cell — in biology
  5. court — for sport
  6. cold — not warm
  7. root — of a plant
  8. present — the time now
  9. root — the cause
  10. field — a subject
  11. bound — tied together
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bound — certain
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. bound — obliged
  16. toast — bread
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. present — there
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. root — of a word
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cold — an illness
  23. field — farmland
  24. court — of a king

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