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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: firm · mine · cold · hand · arm · season · vault · rest

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. vault — a safe
  3. rest — what's left
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. cold — an illness
  8. season — of the year
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — for digging
  11. firm — decided
  12. firm — steady
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. firm — a company
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. cold — not warm
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rest — a break
  19. hand — help
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. rest — what's left
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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