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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: vault · toast · lie · bass · chair · key · fork · bound

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. bass — low music
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bass — the fish
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. key — the most important part
  7. vault — a safe
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bound — certain
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. key — for a lock
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. key — in music

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