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

Word bank: face · pound · snap · vault · straw · race

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — a weight
  3. face — to confront
  4. snap — to click
  5. race — humankind
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. race — a contest
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. face — to point toward
  12. vault — a safe
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. race — the arms race
  18. face — part of the head

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