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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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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: wound · ground · bear · vault · band · last · coach · cold

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. band — a music group
  4. bear — the animal
  5. last — finally
  6. vault — a safe
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. last — to go on
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bear — the animal
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. cold — an illness
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. last — final
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. ground — a position
  21. band — a ring
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. cold — not warm
  24. ground — crushed

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