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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: bat · vault · bound · hand · chair · last · root · tube

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. chair — a leader
  3. last — finally
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. last — to go on
  6. vault — a safe
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. root — of a plant
  9. tube — a container
  10. last — final
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. tube — the underground
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. hand — help
  16. bound — obliged
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. bound — tied together
  20. root — the cause
  21. root — of a word
  22. bound — certain
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bat — for baseball

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