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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: fall · wound · snap · cap · vault · present · bulb · date

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. present — there
  4. date — the fruit
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fall — to drop
  8. snap — to click
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. vault — a safe
  11. cap — of ice
  12. present — the time now
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. present — a gift
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. fall — the season
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. cap — a lid
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. cap — a hat

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