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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: current · vault · land · stick · cabinet · wound · march · lash

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. march — the month
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. land — a country
  5. current — happening now
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. current — of water
  12. wound — an injury
  13. current — electric
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. vault — a safe
  16. land — ground
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. land — to come down
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. cabinet — ministers

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