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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 · swing · bat · capital · object · bound · kick · vault

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. field — farmland
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. capital — a city
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bound — certain
  8. field — for sport
  9. object — an aim
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — a safe
  14. swing — music
  15. kick — in football
  16. object — to protest
  17. capital — money
  18. bat — the animal
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. object — a thing
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. bound — tied together
  23. field — a subject
  24. capital — a big letter

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