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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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Word bank
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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: vault · rest · cell · coach · pass · mate · track · hand

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. mate — a partner
  3. rest — what's left
  4. track — to keep track
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. hand — help
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. rest — a break
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. rest — what's left
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. cell — a phone
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mate — to breed
  19. pass — a permit
  20. track — a song
  21. hand — in cards
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cell — in biology
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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