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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: field · degree · last · sharp · season · lie · club · vault

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. sharp — clever
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. club — for golf
  5. field — farmland
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. field — a subject
  9. degree — temperature
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — of the year
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — in sport
  15. field — for sport
  16. last — final
  17. degree — from a university
  18. last — to go on
  19. vault — a safe
  20. club — a group
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. club — for dancing

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