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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: toast · season · wound · vault · squash · tube · branch · rest

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wound — an injury
  3. vault — a safe
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. rest — what's left
  7. tube — a container
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — a division
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. squash — the sport
  15. toast — bread
  16. season — in sport
  17. rest — what's left
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. rest — a break
  20. season — of the year
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. squash — to crush
  24. wound — an injury

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