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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 116 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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. lean — thin
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lean — to bend
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. vault — a safe
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. field — for sport
  24. straw — a straw man

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