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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: hide · field · bat · board · bound · spell · safe · stick

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. field — a subject
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. spell — letters
  7. field — for sport
  8. bound — tied together
  9. board — to get on
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. bound — certain
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. board — a committee
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. spell — a short time
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. bat — the animal
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. field — farmland
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. bound — obliged
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. spell — magic

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