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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: vault · object · pound · hand · drill · craft · content · lash

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. content — the amount
  4. hand — in cards
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. drill — a practice
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. object — to protest
  13. vault — a safe
  14. drill — the tool
  15. craft — boats
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. object — a thing
  18. craft — a skill
  19. object — an aim
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. drill — army training
  22. hand — help
  23. pound — a weight
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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