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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 120 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: leaves · cell · prune · board · degree · vault · last · mate

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. board — a committee
  5. last — final
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cell — a phone
  9. mate — to breed
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. mate — a friend
  12. board — to get on
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. degree — from a university
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. mate — a partner
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. vault — a safe
  24. leaves — of a tree

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