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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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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: calf · cold · vault · ball · bear · current · band · fork

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cold — an illness
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. ball — a great time
  9. current — happening now
  10. bear — the animal
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. ball — a dance
  13. band — a music group
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. current — electric
  16. cold — not warm
  17. current — of water
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. band — a ring
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. fork — in a road

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