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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 120 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: land · face · trunk · wind · march · vault · bay · deal

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. wind — moving air
  7. march — music
  8. land — a country
  9. face — to point toward
  10. land — ground
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. vault — a safe
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. face — to confront
  17. land — to come down
  18. face — part of the head
  19. wind — moving air
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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