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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. field — farmland
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. face — part of the head
  8. face — to point toward
  9. vault — a safe
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. squash — the sport
  12. club — a group
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. club — for golf
  16. squash — to crush
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. cap — of ice
  19. face — to confront
  20. club — for dancing
  21. cap — a hat
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. jam — in traffic

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