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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: vault · hand · key · race · bay · kid · roll · row

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. row — to paddle
  9. kid — to tease
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. vault — a safe
  13. hand — help
  14. row — a line
  15. hand — in cards
  16. kid — child
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. roll — a list
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. key — the most important part
  23. roll — a cake
  24. key — in music

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