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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: pop · prune · field · board · vault · date · chair · stick

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. pop — to visit
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. board — a committee
  10. field — a subject
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. pop — music
  13. board — to get on
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. field — farmland
  18. vault — a safe
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. prune — to trim
  21. date — the fruit
  22. field — for sport
  23. pop — soda
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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