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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: face · cell · vault · date · field · prune · lash · arm

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. vault — a safe
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. face — part of the head
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. face — to point toward
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. date — the fruit
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cell — in biology
  15. field — farmland
  16. cell — a phone
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. face — to confront
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. prune — to trim
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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