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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 120 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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. band — a ring
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. key — in music
  6. last — final
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. field — for sport
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. field — farmland
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. field — a subject
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. last — to go on
  16. key — the most important part
  17. stem — to come from
  18. band — a music group
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — for a lock
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. last — finally

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