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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. pound — a weight
  3. root — of a word
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. wound — an injury
  6. object — to protest
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. wound — an injury
  9. field — a subject
  10. net — for catching
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. root — of a plant
  13. field — farmland
  14. object — an aim
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — in sport
  19. object — a thing
  20. root — the cause
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. field — for sport
  23. perch — the fish
  24. pound — for dogs

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