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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 · lie · sharp · roll · straw · pound · root · bat

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. bat — the animal
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. sharp — clever
  7. root — of a plant
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. root — of a word
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. root — the cause
  23. roll — a list
  24. straw — dry grass

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