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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: cell · vault · date · mate · kid · leaves · straw · row

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. row — a line
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — child
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. mate — a friend
  9. date — the fruit
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. kid — to tease
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. cell — in biology
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cell — a phone
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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