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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: kick · vault · stem · wave · spring · fall

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. spring — the season
  3. stem — to come from
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. kick — in football
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. fall — the season
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. fall — to drop
  13. spring — a coil
  14. vault — a safe
  15. fall — to drop
  16. spring — of water
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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