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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: cold · staff · ruler · bowl · date · vault · band · stand

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. cold — not warm
  5. date — the fruit
  6. band — a music group
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. staff — a stick
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stand — to bear
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. cold — an illness
  18. staff — employees
  19. vault — a safe
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. staff — employees
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. stand — on your feet

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