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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 · field · bass · vault · shower · rash · chair · can

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  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. field — for sport
  2. track — a path
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bass — the fish
  5. shower — to wash
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. field — farmland
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. track — a song
  11. bass — low music
  12. shower — rain
  13. can — a tin
  14. rash — hasty
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. vault — a safe
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. rash — a series
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. field — a subject
  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