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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. field — for sport
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. field — a subject
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. vault — a safe
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. squash — the sport
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wind — moving air
  12. field — farmland
  13. cue — a signal
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. craft — a skill
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. cue — for pool
  20. craft — boats
  21. wind — moving air
  22. tear — to rip
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. tear — from crying

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