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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. pop — to visit
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. rush — hurry
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a line
  10. field — a subject
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. pop — soda
  13. craft — boats
  14. press — to push
  15. craft — a skill
  16. field — farmland
  17. press — newspapers
  18. field — for sport
  19. pop — music
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. press — a publisher

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