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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: key · band · bay · ground · last · bat · vault · cue

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. last — final
  4. vault — a safe
  5. key — the most important part
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. band — a music group
  8. last — finally
  9. cue — for pool
  10. ground — crushed
  11. cue — a hint
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. band — a ring
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. ground — a position
  18. key — in music
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. last — to go on
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cue — a signal
  24. key — for a lock

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