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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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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: field · trunk · chair · bound · march · wind · toast · ruler

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. chair — a leader
  5. march — music
  6. bound — obliged
  7. field — for sport
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bound — tied together
  11. march — the month
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bound — certain
  18. march — the month
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. toast — bread

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