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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: spring · bat · scale · staff · rule · vault · squash · stick

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. rule — a law
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. staff — a stick
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. bat — the animal
  14. squash — to crush
  15. rule — government
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. vault — a safe
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. squash — the sport
  20. staff — employees
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. spring — of water
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. scale — size or range

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