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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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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: net · wind · object · cold · vault · bank · craft · rule

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. net — for catching
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. craft — a skill
  10. rule — a law
  11. object — a thing
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. craft — boats
  14. bank — of a river
  15. object — to protest
  16. vault — a safe
  17. bank — for money
  18. object — an aim
  19. bank — for money
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. rule — government
  22. wind — moving air
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. wind — moving air

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