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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: vault · fall · pound · last · stem · wake

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. fall — to drop
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — finally
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. vault — a safe
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pound — a weight
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fall — the season
  17. wake — a trail
  18. stem — a stem cell

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