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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: bass · lean · cell · vault · mate · swing

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mate — a partner
  3. bass — the fish
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bass — low music
  6. mate — to breed
  7. swing — music
  8. swing — to play on
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. cell — a phone
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. mate — a friend
  18. cell — in biology

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