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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: field · wound · vault · lean · prune · saw · shower · spring

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. saw — the tool
  7. lean — to bend
  8. spring — of water
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. vault — a safe
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. shower — to wash
  15. field — farmland
  16. spring — the season
  17. lean — thin
  18. spring — a coil
  19. field — a subject
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. shower — rain
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. field — for sport
  24. wound — an injury

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