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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · field · vault · season · wind · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. field — farmland
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. wind — moving air
  7. field — for sport
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. vault — a safe
  11. field — a subject
  12. wind — moving air
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. season — in sport
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. deal — to handle

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