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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: press · row · wind · toast · last · can · mate · vault

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. vault — a safe
  3. toast — bread
  4. row — a line
  5. last — to go on
  6. press — to push
  7. mate — a friend
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. mate — a partner
  13. press — a publisher
  14. can — a tin
  15. row — to paddle
  16. last — finally
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mate — to breed
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. press — newspapers
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. toast — the most admired

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