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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: march · vault · chest · root · toast · clip · wax · chair

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. clip — to cut
  3. march — music
  4. vault — a safe
  5. toast — bread
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. clip — a video
  8. chest — a box
  9. march — the month
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. wax — to grow
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. clip — for paper
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — of a word
  24. march — the month

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