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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: field · present · cell · spring · game · vault

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. game — wild animals
  4. vault — a safe
  5. present — there
  6. spring — the season
  7. field — for sport
  8. cell — in biology
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. present — the time now
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. field — farmland
  16. cell — a phone
  17. field — a subject
  18. game — a match

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