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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 120 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: cap · wind · saw · vault · row · rest · lash · bowl

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — a hat
  11. row — a line
  12. rest — what's left
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cap — of ice
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. saw — the tool
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. wind — moving air
  23. vault — a safe
  24. lash — to lash out

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