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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cold · fall · trunk · sharp · board · net · key

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. key — for a lock
  6. cold — not warm
  7. net — for catching
  8. vault — a safe
  9. board — to get on
  10. net — in sport
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. key — in music
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. fall — the season
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. board — a committee
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — to drop
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. key — the most important part
  24. net — after costs

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