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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: wind · vault · band · chip · nail · firm · chair · wake

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. band — a music group
  3. firm — steady
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. chair — a leader
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. chip — for betting
  9. wind — moving air
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. vault — a safe
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. firm — a company
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wind — moving air
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. band — a ring
  23. chip — to eat
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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