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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: clip · vault · coach · racket · wound · bank

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bank — for money
  8. clip — a video
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bank — of a river
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wound — an injury
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bank — for money
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

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