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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: mug · foot · calf · field · bound · bass · present · face

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. face — to confront
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — there
  6. mug — a cup
  7. bound — certain
  8. bound — obliged
  9. face — part of the head
  10. mug — to rob
  11. field — farmland
  12. bass — low music
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. present — the time now
  19. foot — a measure
  20. mug — a face
  21. field — a subject
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bass — the fish
  24. calf — a young animal

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