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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: stand · saw · rash · key · kid · wound · vault · club

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. key — in music
  3. kid — child
  4. club — for dancing
  5. wound — an injury
  6. saw — the tool
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. club — for golf
  9. vault — a safe
  10. wound — an injury
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. rash — a series
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. stand — to bear
  17. key — for a lock
  18. saw — the tool
  19. kid — to tease
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. rash — hasty
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. key — the most important part

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