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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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Word bank
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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: mark · board · vault · cell · cold · rest

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — a break
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. cell — in biology
  6. mark — a grade
  7. board — a committee
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. vault — a safe
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. rest — what's left
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. mark — a trace
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. board — to get on

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