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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: club · pound · cold · saw · wind · suit · vault · temple

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cold — an illness
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. club — a group
  9. suit — in cards
  10. suit — clothes
  11. suit — to fit
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. saw — the tool
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. pound — a weight
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. club — for golf
  21. cold — not warm
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. club — for dancing

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