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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. field — farmland
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. field — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. key — in music
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. key — for a lock
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. face — part of the head
  14. swing — to play on
  15. stem — to come from
  16. bound — certain
  17. field — a subject
  18. court — for sport
  19. face — to point toward
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — in golf
  22. face — to confront
  23. court — of a king
  24. calf — of the leg

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