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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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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: squash · hand · rest · bat · mark · mine · vault · band

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. squash — to crush
  7. squash — the sport
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. band — a ring
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. band — a music group
  16. vault — a safe
  17. mark — a grade
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. hand — help
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — to pay attention

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