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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: root · vault · fine · land · field · pit · press · cold

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. press — to push
  3. fine — high quality
  4. pit — a hole
  5. land — to come down
  6. root — of a plant
  7. press — a publisher
  8. root — of a word
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. press — newspapers
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. cold — an illness
  15. root — the cause
  16. vault — a safe
  17. fine — all right
  18. cold — not warm
  19. land — ground
  20. field — for sport
  21. pit — in a race
  22. land — a country
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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