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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 120 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: coach · rock · cell · kid · pound · vault

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. rock — music
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. rock — a stone
  8. kid — to tease
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. pound — a weight
  11. vault — a safe
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — a phone
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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