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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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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: vault · season · bound · trunk · face · leaves · snap · cold

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. vault — a safe
  3. cold — not warm
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. bound — tied together
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. bound — obliged
  9. face — part of the head
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cold — an illness
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. snap — to click
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. face — to point toward
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. bound — certain
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. season — of the year
  22. face — to confront
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. trunk — of a car

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