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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 · prune · net · face · chest · hand · toast · stem

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. hand — help
  4. face — to confront
  5. toast — bread
  6. chest — of your body
  7. net — for catching
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. net — after costs
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. prune — to trim
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. net — in sport
  16. face — to point toward
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. prune — to trim
  19. face — part of the head
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. vault — a safe
  24. stem — to come from

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