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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: cabinet · vault · staff · last · rash · bat · firm · spell

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. spell — letters
  3. last — final
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. staff — a stick
  9. spell — magic
  10. staff — employees
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. firm — decided
  14. last — to go on
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. firm — a company
  17. rash — a series
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. last — finally
  22. rash — hasty
  23. firm — steady
  24. staff — employees

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