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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: vault · field · stand · face · lash · hand · fall · roll

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. face — part of the head
  5. roll — a list
  6. face — to confront
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. face — to point toward
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stand — to bear
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. field — for sport
  18. roll — a cake
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. hand — help
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. fall — the season

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