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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: calf · vault · cold · current · fall · mouse · coach · wax

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  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. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fall — to drop
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. fall — the season
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — to grow
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. current — happening now
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. vault — a safe
  16. current — electric
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cold — not warm
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. current — of water
  23. coach — a trainer
  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