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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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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: degree · band · foot · vault · straw · arm · last · ground

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a ring
  3. foot — a measure
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — a position
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. last — finally
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. degree — from a university
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. last — final
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — temperature
  21. last — to go on
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. vault — a safe
  24. ground — the earth

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