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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: snap · vault · band · press · drill · jam · branch · swing

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. drill — army training
  5. band — a music group
  6. branch — a division
  7. swing — to play on
  8. press — a publisher
  9. press — newspapers
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. band — a ring
  12. drill — the tool
  13. press — to push
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. swing — in golf
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. drill — a practice
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. swing — music
  24. branch — of a bank

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