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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 · chest · pass · calf · face · bore · field · wake

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. bore — to tire
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. vault — a safe
  7. field — a subject
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. face — part of the head
  10. wake — a trail
  11. face — to confront
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. chest — of your body
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. pass — a permit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. face — to point toward
  19. field — for sport
  20. bore — to drill
  21. chest — a box
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. field — farmland

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