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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: mine · last · vault · suit · rule · kid · ground · field

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. last — to go on
  3. field — a subject
  4. ground — crushed
  5. ground — the earth
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. suit — clothes
  14. suit — to fit
  15. ground — a position
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. field — for sport
  18. kid — to tease
  19. field — farmland
  20. rule — government
  21. kid — child
  22. last — finally
  23. last — final
  24. mine — for digging

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