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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: pound · chest · vault · cell · clip · mate

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. mate — to breed
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pound — a weight
  6. cell — in biology
  7. clip — a video
  8. mate — a friend
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — for paper
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — a safe
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cell — a phone

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