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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: rest · date · wind · field · bass · cell · vault · lean

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. bass — low music
  5. rest — what's left
  6. field — for sport
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. lean — to bend
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bass — the fish
  11. rest — a break
  12. lean — thin
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cell — in biology
  15. wind — moving air
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wind — moving air
  18. vault — a safe
  19. date — the fruit
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. rest — what's left
  23. field — a subject
  24. field — farmland

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