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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: field · cabinet · key · leaves · cold · present · vault · shower

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. cold — an illness
  4. present — there
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. key — in music
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. key — for a lock
  10. cold — not warm
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — a safe
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. shower — to wash
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. present — the time now
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. key — the most important part
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. field — farmland
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. present — a gift
  23. shower — rain
  24. field — a subject

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