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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. field — farmland
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. prune — to trim
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. vault — a safe
  16. rash — hasty
  17. field — a subject
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. pound — a weight
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rash — a series
  24. field — for sport

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