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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 116 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: cabinet · band · content · mate · vault · fall · last · saw

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. content — happy
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. band — a music group
  6. last — final
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — a partner
  9. vault — a safe
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. mate — to breed
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. last — to go on
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. fall — the season
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. last — finally
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. saw — the tool
  23. band — a ring
  24. cabinet — ministers

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