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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 · bat · cell · calf · firm · wake · board · wind

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. firm — steady
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. firm — a company
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wake — a trail
  13. vault — a safe
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. board — to get on
  16. board — a committee
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. firm — decided
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. cell — a phone

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