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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 · file · kid · firm · pop · content · last · present

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. last — final
  3. present — there
  4. file — a tool
  5. firm — decided
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. firm — steady
  8. pop — music
  9. last — to go on
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. content — happy
  12. content — the amount
  13. vault — a safe
  14. file — a line of people
  15. present — the time now
  16. pop — soda
  17. firm — a company
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. last — finally
  20. pop — to visit
  21. kid — child
  22. file — a document
  23. kid — to tease
  24. present — a gift

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