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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 120 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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — to fit
  4. object — to protest
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — for sport
  8. object — a thing
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. sharp — clever
  14. field — a subject
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. clip — for paper
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. clip — to cut
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. clip — a video
  24. object — an aim

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