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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 · object · band · stem · stock · last · lean · bark

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. band — a ring
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. last — finally
  5. last — final
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. stock — shares
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. object — to protest
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. object — a thing
  13. vault — a safe
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bark — to shout
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to bend
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. stem — to come from
  21. last — to go on
  22. band — a music group
  23. object — an aim
  24. stock — goods

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