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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 · race · pop · bound · face · land · rock · band

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. face — to point toward
  4. band — a music group
  5. vault — a safe
  6. race — a contest
  7. land — a country
  8. land — ground
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pop — soda
  11. rock — a stone
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. bound — certain
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bound — obliged
  17. race — humankind
  18. land — to come down
  19. band — a ring
  20. rock — music
  21. face — to confront
  22. pop — music
  23. bound — tied together
  24. pop — to visit

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