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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: craft · ruler · wound · vault · spring · wax · rash · cap

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. rash — hasty
  3. craft — a skill
  4. vault — a safe
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. cap — of ice
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. craft — boats
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — the season
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rash — a series
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. cap — a hat
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. cap — a lid

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