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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. firm — decided
  3. field — for sport
  4. band — a music group
  5. field — farmland
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. field — a subject
  9. prune — to trim
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. tear — from crying
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. firm — steady
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. squash — to crush
  16. band — a ring
  17. tear — from crying
  18. firm — a company
  19. squash — the sport
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. prune — to trim
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. vault — a safe

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