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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 120 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. degree — from a university
  3. vault — a safe
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. last — to go on
  7. can — a tin
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. wind — moving air
  10. firm — steady
  11. pass — a permit
  12. degree — temperature
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. can — to be able to
  15. degree — an amount
  16. branch — a division
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. can — a tin
  20. last — finally
  21. firm — decided
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. wind — moving air
  24. firm — a company

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