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

Word bank: degree · firm · straw · mate · vault · race

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. degree — from a university
  3. vault — a safe
  4. degree — an amount
  5. race — humankind
  6. mate — to breed
  7. firm — a company
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. mate — a friend
  10. degree — temperature
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — steady
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. race — a contest
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. race — the arms race
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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