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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: drill · wake · kick · vault · band · lean · foot · hand

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. kick — in football
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. band — a music group
  6. drill — army training
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. drill — the tool
  11. hand — in cards
  12. lean — thin
  13. vault — a safe
  14. drill — a practice
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. hand — help
  19. band — a ring
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. foot — a measure
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. lean — to bend
  24. wake — a trail

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