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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pop — music
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. field — for sport
  12. court — for sport
  13. branch — a division
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. court — of a king
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pop — soda
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. court — of law
  24. pitcher — a jug

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