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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: vault · wind · plane · cap · temple · bay · pass · stock

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wind — moving air
  4. plane — a tool
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. stock — shares
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. stock — goods
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — a safe
  12. cap — of ice
  13. pass — a permit
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. cap — a lid
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. wind — moving air
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. cap — a hat

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