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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. field — farmland
  4. charge — electricity
  5. field — a subject
  6. cold — not warm
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. field — for sport
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. charge — in control
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. charge — a price
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cold — an illness
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. coach — a trainer

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