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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: scale · cue · mine · present · snap · vault · band · chair

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mine — for digging
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. present — a gift
  8. scale — size or range
  9. chair — a leader
  10. band — a ring
  11. present — there
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. present — the time now
  14. band — a music group
  15. cue — a signal
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. scale — in music
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. vault — a safe
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cue — for pool
  24. snap — to click

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