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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: fall · race · toast · tube · rash · vault · swing · snap

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. rash — hasty
  4. race — the arms race
  5. swing — in golf
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. tube — a container
  8. swing — to play on
  9. toast — bread
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. snap — to click
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. race — a contest
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. race — humankind
  17. tube — the underground
  18. fall — the season
  19. swing — music
  20. rash — a series
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. vault — a safe

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