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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: wake · vault · fork · season · bank · tear · bass · net

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bank — for money
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. fork — in a road
  9. net — after costs
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bank — for money
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. net — for catching
  15. tear — from crying
  16. season — in sport
  17. bank — of a river
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bass — the fish
  20. season — of the year
  21. vault — a safe
  22. net — in sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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