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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: tube · row · fan · date · wind · content · vault · pound

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. date — the fruit
  6. wind — moving air
  7. tube — a container
  8. content — happy
  9. row — a line
  10. content — the amount
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. tube — the underground
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. wind — moving air
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pound — a weight
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. row — to paddle
  21. vault — a safe
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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