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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: chest · wound · bound · vault · temple · bowl · present · pop

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. vault — a safe
  3. pop — soda
  4. bound — obliged
  5. present — a gift
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pop — music
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. pop — to visit
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wound — an injury
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. bound — certain
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bound — tied together
  19. present — there
  20. present — the time now
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. chest — a box
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. bowl — a dish

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