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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: vault · spring · fall · net · club · rush · chair · wake

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wake — a trail
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. club — for dancing
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. net — for catching
  11. club — a group
  12. net — after costs
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. spring — the season
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. net — in sport
  18. vault — a safe
  19. spring — of water
  20. fall — to drop
  21. club — for golf
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. spring — a coil

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