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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: land · rest · wave · vault · stock · cell

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. cell — a phone
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — ground
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — goods
  9. rest — a break
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. vault — a safe
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. cell — in biology
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stock — shares
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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