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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 · field · cell · date · mark · cap · staff · bound

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bound — certain
  3. staff — employees
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. staff — a stick
  7. bound — obliged
  8. mug — to rob
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. field — farmland
  11. mug — a face
  12. field — a subject
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bound — tied together
  15. cap — a hat
  16. mark — a grade
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mug — a cup
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cap — a lid
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cap — of ice
  24. staff — employees

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