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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: march · vault · stand · jam · mine · straw · hand · snap

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. snap — to click
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. march — the month
  6. stand — to bear
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. hand — help
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. march — the month
  20. mine — for digging
  21. hand — in cards
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. march — music
  24. jam — a tight spot

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