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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.

Make a worksheet

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: straw · vault · rash · fork · saw · spring · date · can

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. can — a tin
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. date — the fruit
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. spring — of water
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. can — a tin
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. can — to be able to
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. spring — the season
  15. vault — a safe
  16. saw — the tool
  17. rash — hasty
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. spring — a coil
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. saw — the tool
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. fork — in a road

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