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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: cap · vault · snap · bulb · shower · racket · can · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. vault — a safe
  3. shower — to wash
  4. can — to be able to
  5. shower — rain
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. cap — of ice
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to click
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. field — farmland
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — a lid
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bulb — for light
  21. can — a tin
  22. bulb — for light
  23. field — a subject
  24. can — a tin

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