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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 116 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. club — a group
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — for sport
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a line
  9. branch — a division
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cap — of ice
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — a subject
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cap — a lid
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. bulb — for light
  23. club — for golf
  24. club — for dancing

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