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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: vault · last · mine · wound · bowl · straw · calf · date

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. last — final
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. vault — a safe
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mine — for digging
  13. wound — an injury
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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