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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: key · wake · kid · wind · field · toast · vault · season

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. toast — bread
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. kid — child
  6. wake — a trail
  7. kid — to tease
  8. vault — a safe
  9. season — of the year
  10. key — in music
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. key — the most important part
  13. field — a subject
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. field — for sport
  16. field — farmland
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. wind — moving air
  19. key — for a lock
  20. wind — moving air
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. season — in 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