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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. field — for sport
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. tear — from crying
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. tear — from crying
  14. vault — a safe
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. prune — to trim
  18. field — a subject
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. field — farmland
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. tear — to rip
  23. prune — to trim
  24. nail — for a hammer

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