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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 · coach · race · chair · file · bear · last · trunk

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. file — a tool
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. last — final
  9. file — a document
  10. vault — a safe
  11. chair — a leader
  12. race — the arms race
  13. last — finally
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. race — a contest
  17. file — a line of people
  18. race — humankind
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. bear — the animal
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. last — to go on
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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