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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: wake · rest · cell · wound · track · vault · bear · scale

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. vault — a safe
  4. wake — a trail
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bear — the animal
  8. track — a song
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — a phone
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. scale — size or range
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bear — the animal
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. scale — in music
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. track — a path

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