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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: hand · board · field · wound · degree · vault · spring · bore

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  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. vault — in gymnastics
  2. spring — of water
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. field — for sport
  5. bore — to drill
  6. board — a committee
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. spring — the season
  11. wound — an injury
  12. board — to get on
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. hand — help
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bore — to tire
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. spring — a coil
  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