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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: pound · club · cold · arm · craft · rash · bound · vault

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. club — for dancing
  3. rash — a series
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bound — tied together
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. vault — a safe
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bound — certain
  10. pound — a weight
  11. craft — boats
  12. cold — an illness
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. craft — a skill
  15. club — for golf
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. rash — hasty
  18. club — a group
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cold — not warm
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. pound — to hit hard

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