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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 116 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: root · club · wind · ground · last · vault · bore · pit

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — finally
  3. ground — the earth
  4. pit — in a race
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. club — for dancing
  7. root — of a plant
  8. club — a group
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. wind — moving air
  11. club — for golf
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. vault — a safe
  15. pit — a hole
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. last — to go on
  19. ground — crushed
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. bore — to tire
  22. ground — a position
  23. bore — to drill
  24. wind — moving air

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