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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: stem · vault · ball · saw · content · rock · race · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. race — a contest
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. race — humankind
  6. stem — to come from
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rock — music
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. race — the arms race
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — a stone
  13. content — the amount
  14. ball — a dance
  15. content — happy
  16. vault — a safe
  17. game — a match
  18. saw — the tool
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ball — a great time
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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