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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
468
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: present · bat · field · ball · fork · safe · capital · game

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. present — there
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. field — for sport
  5. ball — a dance
  6. field — farmland
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. fork — in a road
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. capital — a city
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. game — a match
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. field — a subject
  19. game — wild animals
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. capital — money
  24. safe — a strongbox

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