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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 · charge · race · vault · kid · band

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  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. band — a music group
  2. face — part of the head
  3. charge — a price
  4. race — humankind
  5. vault — a safe
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. race — the arms race
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. charge — in control
  11. race — a contest
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. kid — child
  14. charge — electricity
  15. band — a ring
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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