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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 120 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: sharp · coach · season · bore · wound · kid · vault · pound

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. wound — an injury
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. bore — to tire
  5. kid — child
  6. wound — an injury
  7. season — in sport
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. season — of the year
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. sharp — clever
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bore — to drill
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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