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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: field · date · straw · bank · vault · bowl · lash · cue

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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. bowl — a dish
  2. bank — of a river
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. date — the fruit
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. bank — for money
  10. cue — a signal
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — a subject
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. field — for sport
  19. cue — for pool
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bank — for money
  23. bowl — to roll
  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