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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: dip · vault · plane · press · perch · wind · chest · fall

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. dip — to sink
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. vault — a safe
  6. fall — the season
  7. press — to push
  8. chest — of your body
  9. press — a publisher
  10. chest — a box
  11. fall — to drop
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. press — newspapers
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. fall — to drop
  16. chest — of your body
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. plane — a tool
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. wind — moving air
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. dip — to dunk

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