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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. kid — to tease
  9. pitch — completely
  10. firm — a company
  11. firm — decided
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tear — from crying
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. firm — steady
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. tear — from crying
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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