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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 120 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: fork · stock · vault · lie · degree · tear · prune · board

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. board — a committee
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. stock — goods
  5. board — to get on
  6. fork — in a road
  7. degree — from a university
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. degree — an amount
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stock — shares
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. lie — to recline
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. prune — to trim
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. tear — to rip
  24. vault — a safe

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