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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: fork · vault · bound · bulb · bay · field · cell · mine

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. cell — in biology
  3. mine — for digging
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. cell — a phone
  7. field — farmland
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bound — certain
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bulb — for light
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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