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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. race — a contest
  3. file — a tool
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bank — for money
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. band — a ring
  8. last — to go on
  9. race — the arms race
  10. vault — a safe
  11. band — a music group
  12. file — a document
  13. last — finally
  14. file — a line of people
  15. last — final
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bank — of a river
  18. race — humankind
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. wake — a trail
  23. bank — for money
  24. pound — a weight

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