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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: bound · bat · ground · mark · safe · staff · object · field

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. bound — obliged
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. mark — a trace
  6. staff — employees
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. field — farmland
  10. object — an aim
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bat — the animal
  13. field — a subject
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. ground — a position
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. bound — certain
  23. mark — a grade
  24. field — for sport

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