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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. last — to go on
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. field — a subject
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. field — farmland
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. last — finally
  19. field — for sport
  20. vault — a safe
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. race — humankind
  23. last — final
  24. toast — bread

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