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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: vault · file · rule · cold · foot · pass · sharp · chest

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. pass — a permit
  3. foot — a measure
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — an illness
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. chest — of your body
  10. rule — a law
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. vault — a safe
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. chest — a box
  16. file — a document
  17. sharp — clever
  18. rule — government
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. file — a tool
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. file — a line of people
  24. sharp — exactly

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