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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: fall · staff · vault · snap · bound · net · straw · kick

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. net — after costs
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. snap — to click
  8. staff — a stick
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. net — for catching
  12. fall — to drop
  13. net — in sport
  14. bound — tied together
  15. fall — to drop
  16. vault — a safe
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. fall — the season
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. staff — employees
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. straw — a straw man

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