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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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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: vault · lean · fan · straw · scale · face · kid · last

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. face — part of the head
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. vault — a safe
  8. lean — to bend
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. last — final
  11. last — to go on
  12. face — to confront
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — thin
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. last — finally
  17. scale — size or range
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. kid — child
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. scale — in music
  23. kid — to tease
  24. face — to point toward

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