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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: safe · pound · cold · pit · present · field · roll · track

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pound — a weight
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. roll — a cake
  5. field — farmland
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. field — for sport
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. present — the time now
  11. track — a path
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. present — there
  14. roll — a list
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. track — a song
  21. present — a gift
  22. field — a subject
  23. track — to keep track
  24. cold — an illness

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