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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: wax · key · straw · pit · stock · vault · chest · season

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chest — a box
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. season — of the year
  11. vault — a safe
  12. season — in sport
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stock — goods
  17. pit — in a race
  18. key — in music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. key — for a lock
  23. pit — a hole
  24. wax — to grow

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