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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: mine · vault · calf · wind · mug · bat · content · firm

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. mine — for digging
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. firm — steady
  10. mug — to rob
  11. firm — decided
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. firm — a company
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — happy
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. bat — the animal
  23. vault — a safe
  24. wind — to turn a key

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