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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: cell · band · mate · wound · vault · cap

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — a friend
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cell — a phone
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. mate — to breed
  9. cap — a hat
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. band — a music group
  14. wound — an injury
  15. cap — a lid
  16. band — a ring
  17. vault — a safe
  18. cap — of ice

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