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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: wind · vault · last · fan · leaves · pass · wave · roll

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. roll — a list
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. last — final
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. vault — a safe
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. pass — a permit
  24. pass — to spend time

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