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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. club — a group
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. club — for golf
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — child
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. prune — to trim
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. prune — to trim
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — a safe
  19. field — for sport
  20. club — for dancing
  21. dip — to sink
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. trunk — of a car

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