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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 116 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: court · stick · firm · safe · cell · mine · field · pitcher

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. firm — a company
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. court — of a king
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. firm — decided
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. cell — in biology
  17. court — of law
  18. court — for sport
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. field — for sport
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. mine — an explosive

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