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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 120 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: bound · mine · ball · key · field · march · deal · spell

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. march — the month
  4. key — for a lock
  5. ball — a great time
  6. march — music
  7. mine — for digging
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. spell — letters
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. ball — a dance
  12. field — a subject
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — certain
  15. spell — magic
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. march — the month
  18. bound — tied together
  19. key — in music
  20. key — the most important part
  21. field — farmland
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. spell — a short time
  24. deal — to handle

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