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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. row — a line
  3. vault — a safe
  4. rest — a break
  5. field — a subject
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. rest — what's left
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. bank — for money
  10. band — a ring
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. field — for sport
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bank — for money
  18. band — a music group
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bank — of a river
  22. row — to paddle
  23. swing — to play on
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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