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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 120 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: content · bat · bound · wind · face · branch · vault · object

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. content — happy
  4. object — to protest
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. face — to point toward
  7. content — the amount
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bound — certain
  13. object — a thing
  14. vault — a safe
  15. bat — the animal
  16. wind — moving air
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. object — an aim
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bound — tied together
  23. wind — moving air
  24. face — to confront

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