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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: wake · vault · kick · net · pit · cold · bear · stick

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bear — the animal
  4. net — in sport
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wake — a trail
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. cold — an illness
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. kick — in football
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. pit — a hole
  18. bear — the animal
  19. net — for catching
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. cold — not warm
  22. net — after costs
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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