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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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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: cold · fork · pop · field · calf · cap · court · board

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. fork — in a road
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pop — music
  5. field — for sport
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. board — to get on
  10. pop — soda
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. field — a subject
  14. cold — an illness
  15. court — of a king
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. pop — to visit
  18. court — for sport
  19. board — a committee
  20. field — farmland
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cap — a lid
  24. fork — to eat with

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