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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. field — for sport
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. last — final
  5. club — for golf
  6. last — finally
  7. pound — a weight
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. cap — a lid
  11. vault — a safe
  12. field — farmland
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rush — hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. field — a subject
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. last — to go on
  21. club — a group
  22. cap — of ice
  23. club — for dancing
  24. pound — for dogs

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