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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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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 · field · kid · pound · present · rock · track · stick

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. track — a song
  3. field — a subject
  4. track — a path
  5. court — of law
  6. field — for sport
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. rock — music
  10. present — a gift
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. rock — a stone
  13. track — to keep track
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. kid — to tease
  16. field — farmland
  17. kid — child
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. present — there
  22. pound — a weight
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. present — the time now

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