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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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Word bank
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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 · bat · coach · rest · hide · mouse · row · vault

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. vault — a safe
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. row — to paddle
  9. field — for sport
  10. bat — the animal
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — a break
  16. row — a line
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. field — farmland
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. field — a subject
  22. rest — what's left
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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