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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: chair · land · mate · vault · bank · present · can · clip

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. land — a country
  3. can — a tin
  4. mate — to breed
  5. land — ground
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. clip — for paper
  8. can — a tin
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. mate — a partner
  13. clip — a video
  14. chair — a leader
  15. present — the time now
  16. bank — for money
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. bank — of a river
  19. present — a gift
  20. mate — a friend
  21. present — there
  22. bank — for money
  23. can — to be able to
  24. land — to come down

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