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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.

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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: vault · land · tear · clip · field · deal · suit · season

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. land — ground
  3. suit — to fit
  4. field — farmland
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. field — a subject
  7. tear — to rip
  8. clip — a video
  9. tear — from crying
  10. clip — for paper
  11. land — to come down
  12. season — in sport
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. tear — from crying
  15. suit — in cards
  16. land — a country
  17. deal — to handle
  18. suit — clothes
  19. clip — to cut
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. vault — a safe
  24. season — of the year

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