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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: last · vault · rock · fall · file · mine · prune · fan

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. prune — the fruit
  2. mine — for digging
  3. last — final
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fall — to drop
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. last — finally
  10. vault — a safe
  11. prune — to trim
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. file — a document
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. last — to go on
  18. prune — to trim
  19. fall — the season
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. mine — an explosive
  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