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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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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: swing · rash · vault · field · last · nail · wax · plane

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. nail — on a finger
  2. vault — a safe
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. last — final
  5. field — farmland
  6. plane — a tool
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — music
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. rash — a series
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. last — finally
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. last — to go on
  21. wax — to grow
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. rash — hasty
  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