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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · field · chip · plane · kid · vault

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. pound — a weight
  6. plane — a tool
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. kid — child
  9. field — farmland
  10. chip — to eat
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. field — a subject
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. chip — for betting
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. kid — to tease
  18. field — for sport

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