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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: row · vault · pound · kid · field · craft · squash · key

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. craft — boats
  4. squash — the sport
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. craft — a skill
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. field — a subject
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. field — farmland
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. key — in music
  17. key — for a lock
  18. kid — to tease
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. field — for sport
  21. row — a line
  22. squash — to crush
  23. key — the most important part
  24. row — to paddle

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