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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 116 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: wind · kid · vault · lean · bass · ground · mark · spring

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. mark — a trace
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. spring — the season
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. lean — to bend
  11. spring — of water
  12. kid — child
  13. bass — low music
  14. mark — a grade
  15. ground — a position
  16. vault — a safe
  17. bass — the fish
  18. lean — thin
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. ground — the earth
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. ground — crushed
  24. wind — to turn a key

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