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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: drill · saw · vault · mark · last · file · bay · temple

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. mark — a grade
  3. file — a document
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. saw — the tool
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. last — final
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. file — a tool
  11. mark — a trace
  12. drill — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. vault — a safe
  15. last — to go on
  16. file — a line of people
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. last — finally
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — a practice

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