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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. game — wild animals
  5. last — finally
  6. drill — a practice
  7. last — final
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. bank — of a river
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. cell — a phone
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — for digging
  15. vault — a safe
  16. last — to go on
  17. game — a match
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. drill — the tool
  20. pound — a weight
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bank — for money

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