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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 120 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: face · bank · vault · last · straw · sharp · wind · field

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bank — of a river
  3. field — for sport
  4. bank — for money
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. bank — for money
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. vault — a safe
  9. face — to confront
  10. sharp — clever
  11. last — finally
  12. field — farmland
  13. wind — moving air
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. face — part of the head
  17. field — a subject
  18. last — final
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. last — to go on
  22. face — to point toward
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. sharp — exactly

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