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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: roll · face · deal · march · bay · hand · last · vault

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  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. face — to point toward
  2. last — final
  3. march — the month
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. vault — a safe
  6. march — the month
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. deal — to handle
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. roll — a cake
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. face — part of the head
  20. march — music
  21. last — finally
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. last — to go on
  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