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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: march · snap · current · band · deal · sharp · chest · vault

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. march — the month
  3. band — a music group
  4. snap — to click
  5. chest — of your body
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. sharp — clever
  8. vault — a safe
  9. chest — a box
  10. deal — to handle
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. chest — of your body
  16. current — happening now
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. band — a ring
  20. march — the month
  21. current — electric
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. current — of water

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