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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: bowl · craft · vault · branch · race · wound

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. craft — boats
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. race — humankind
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. wound — an injury
  9. vault — a safe
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. race — the arms race
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. race — a contest
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. craft — a skill

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