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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: drill · vault · key · pound · hand · saw · object · toast

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. drill — army training
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. hand — in cards
  7. key — the most important part
  8. toast — bread
  9. drill — a practice
  10. saw — the tool
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. key — for a lock
  13. key — in music
  14. saw — the tool
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. object — a thing
  17. vault — a safe
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. drill — the tool
  20. object — an aim
  21. object — to protest
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. pound — a weight

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