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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: patient · field · vault · bore · scale · kid · bank · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  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. prune — to trim
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. bore — to drill
  4. prune — to trim
  5. kid — to tease
  6. field — farmland
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — child
  9. bank — for money
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. vault — a safe
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. field — a subject
  15. bank — for money
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. bore — to tire
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bank — of a river
  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