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

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bound — certain
  4. kid — to tease
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. cold — an illness
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. bound — obliged
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. kid — child
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. branch — a division
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cold — the Cold War

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