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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: track · vault · hand · pound · bore · club · wax · field

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. club — for dancing
  6. hand — help
  7. pound — a weight
  8. hand — in cards
  9. field — a subject
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bore — to drill
  12. field — farmland
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. club — a group
  16. vault — a safe
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. track — a song
  19. club — for golf
  20. wax — to grow
  21. track — a path
  22. track — to keep track
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. field — for sport

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