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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: chest · bulb · bore · vault · last · lean · plane · court

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. chest — of your body
  3. vault — a safe
  4. lean — to bend
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. last — finally
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. plane — a tool
  10. bore — to drill
  11. court — of a king
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bulb — for light
  15. lean — thin
  16. court — of law
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. chest — a box
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bulb — for light
  21. chest — of your body
  22. last — to go on
  23. court — for sport
  24. bulb — of a plant

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