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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: ground · wave · racket · capital · face · field · hide · court

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. capital — money
  3. field — a subject
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — the earth
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. court — of a king
  15. capital — a city
  16. court — of law
  17. ground — crushed
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to point toward
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. field — farmland
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. face — to confront
  24. court — for sport

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